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Our not-so-long national nightmare has been resolved, as the San Francisco 49ers reportedly agreed to trade 2021 third overall draft pick QB Trey Lance to the Dallas Cowboys for a fourth-round pick, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Lance played eight games (four starts) over two seasons with the 49ers, passing for 797 yards and 5 touchdowns against three interceptions (84.5 passer rating) and adding 235 yards and a score on the ground. His four starts were sporadic — two emergency starts in relief for starter Jimmy Garoppolo in 2021, a monsoon-level start in Week 1 last year, and 16 snaps in Week 3 before suffering an ankle injury that would cost him the rest of the season and, ultimately, his starting job.
In Lance’s absence, the 49ers turned to Garoppolo and eventually 2022 Mr. Irrelevant Brock Purdy, who went 5-0 as a starter in the regular season and won his first two playoff starts before getting injured himself in the NFC Conference Championship game. Purdy appears to be ready to go for the start of 2023, and with the team announcing earlier this week that offseason free agent signing Sam Darnold would be the No. 2, Lance was a man without a role.
Trey Lance Lands with the Cowboys, Fantasy Reaction
He lands in Dallas, where he shouldn’t have much trouble seizing the backup role to incumbent starter Dak Prescott over Cooper Rush and Will Grier. Obviously, that’s not a very fantasy-viable role without an injury to Prescott. That said, there’s a chance the light-on-running-backs Cowboys come up with a few Lance-specific packages, given the 23-year-old quarterback’s rushing ability. That’s certainly not going to be enough to give him any fantasy value, and it probably won’t be enough to downgrade Prescott or RB Tony Pollard in fantasy, but it wouldn’t be a shock to see fantasy managers frustrated by a few Lance plays in 2023.
The move gives the Cowboys the season to see what they have in Lance before deciding on his fifth-year option after the year. The team has a potential (albeit expensive) out in Prescott’s contract after the year if it wants, so even if it’s a real longshot, there is a path to Lance getting the Cowboys job is he impresses and/or Prescott falls flat.
Meanwhile, Purdy and Darnold are locked in as the 1-2 in San Francisco, but this move basically guarantees Brandon Allen will also make the team as the No. 3. There’s no team in the league more likely to carry a third quarterback on the active roster than the 49ers, after QB injuries left the team relying on street free agent Josh Johnson, couldn’t-throw-the-ball Purdy and running back Christian McCaffrey at quarterback in its final game of the season.
