The Cowboys added to their quarterback room in a high-profile way this week, and barely anyone — even on their own team — saw it coming.
On Friday, Dallas traded for signal-caller Trey Lance, who was drafted No. 3 overall in 2021 by the 49ers and simply hasn’t panned out.
The acquisition led to speculation about whether current Cowboys starting quarterback Dak Prescott is on the clock, and owner Jerry Jones says he hasn’t talked to the two-time Pro Bowler at all.
“No, we, we didn’t tell anybody until we did it, period,” Jones said Saturday, regarding the Lance move before the Cowboys final preseason game against the Las Vegas Raiders.
“There was nobody that knew about it. We told [Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy] after we had done it, but my point is we just wanted to get it done. Again, we didn’t waste any time. My point is … we didn’t want them to hang up.”
Asked directly whether or not Jones had spoken to Prescott prior to adding Lance, the Cowboys owner said Saturday, “No, I have not.”
The Cowboys sent a 2024 fourth-round draft pick in exchange for Lance, who has made four career NFL starts since coming into the NFL.
Prescott also addressed the trade on Saturday evening following the game against the Raiders.
“I can’t say that I expected it, no,” Prescott said. “I understand that that’s business. I understand that they were probably on a timeline, they needed to get something done. As [Jerry Jones] said, he felt like that strengthened this team.”
He later added, “To be honest with you, I’m not surprised by anything anymore.”
Jones subsequently added that McCarthy “approved” of the transaction, saying that the coach “liked” Lance as a quarterback coming out of college.
Prescott is signed through 2024, but Jones insisted that bringing in Lance won’t affect a potential extension.
“Didn’t cross my mind, period, about an impact here regarding Dak,” Jones said Saturday. “I know that Dak wants to do anything we can do to improve this team and we’re going to do it. The facts are that the decision to bring in as high a quality of talent as we could, that’s involving young talent … that’s something that we’ve been trying to do, just never the opportunity seems to be there. So often we’ve been trying to do what we did today with this trade almost every draft since we’ve been drafting.”
Lance’s deal also runs through 2024, with a fifth-year team option for 2025.
Prescott will now be backed up by Lance and Cooper Rush.
Will Grier, who started the Cowboys’ preseason finale at quarterback, will be cut before the start of the season, but he was given the opportunity to showcase himself before hitting the open market.
Grier threw for 305 yards and scored four total touchdowns in the 31-16 win over the Raiders.