The 49ers seem to be wiser by the day for trading away Trey Lance to the Cowboys a year ago.
Usually, rival teams don’t engage in trades. Especially if many feel those two teams will duke it out for postseason jockeying.
The San Francisco 49ers know this well, especially after that infamous 1990s deal that sent pass-rusher Charles Haley to the Dallas Cowboys that helped Dallas become the team of the decade.
It’s safe to say quarterback Trey Lance is nowhere on par with Haley, though.
Lance’s turbulent first few years at the NFL level need little introduction. The No. 3 overall pick from the 2021 NFL Draft, whom the Niners aggressively traded up to get, suffered a devastating ankle injury early in 2022 when he was given the starting reins. A year later, he was soundly beat out by San Francisco’s current starter, Brock Purdy, which led to the 49ers shipping Lance off to the Cowboys in exchange for a fourth-round pick.
Of all the flamed-out quarterbacks from the 2021 draft class who were dealt, that was the highest return in exchange.
After serving as Dallas’ third-string quarterback in 2023, Lance was poised to receive plenty of field time during training camp this year.
And, whew. It has been rough for the former North Dakota State product.
Trey Lance continues to justify 49ers trading him away
There’ll be no getting around the fact the Niners whiffed massively in the Lance experiment, and Purdy’s ascent has helped alleviate that to a large extent.
But now, Lance is making the Cowboys look bad for acquiring him.
After yet another rough start to camp, Lance made another lowlight-worthy toss during 11-on-11 drills that has since gone viral:
How Lance didn’t see Cowboys safety Markquese Bell is anyone’s guess, but reports of similar struggles have paralleled the quarterback’s second year with Dallas so far.
Perhaps San Francisco saw early what’s turning into a painful truth about Lance, the fact his overall lack of collegiate experience was going to greatly hinder his pro-level development to the point any further investment wasn’t going to pan out.
But, also likely, the 49ers kept it a closely guarded secret, thereby convincing the Cowboys (somehow) to dish out a fourth-rounder in exchange for the underachieving quarterback.
One who’ll likely remain a third-stringer for Dallas for the foreseeable future.
