Cowboys insiders give troubling Trey Lance assessment to start training camp

The Dallas Cowboys have made a new contract offer to Dak Prescott, but the two sides don't seem close on finding a middle ground. It wouldn't be the least bit surprising if Prescott signed an extension this week, but until he does all eyes at training camp are on Trey Lance.

Acquired from the 49ers for a fourth-round pick last August, Lance is viewed by many as the Cowboys' ace in the hole if Prescott were to leave as a free agent in 2025. While that would save Dallas a ton of money, it hinges on Lance proving that he is starting material.

Training camp and preseason, where Lance is expected to get the lion's share of reps, will give the Cowboys a solid answer in that regard, if not a concrete one. It would appear, though, that the offseason hype behind Lance was a little premature.

While Lance has made some pretty throws on the practice field, multiple Cowboys insiders haven't been impressed by the 23-year-old.

Trey Lance has been a major disappointment at Cowboys training camp

Bobby Belt of 105.3 The Fan believes Cooper Rush has a leg up on Lance for the backup job behind Prescott. That isn't a huge cause for concern, but Belt took things a step further and said "Lance doesn't look like a legitimate NFL QB right now" in responding to a fan on social media.

The ever-reliable Jon Machota of The Athletic also hasn't liked what he's seen thus far from the former third overall pick. While Machota isn't overreacting to Lance's slow start, he too has Rush winning the QB2 battle. Machota has noticed an apparent timidness in Lance.

"The pads haven’t even come on, so it’s difficult to be too critical," writes Machota. "But if the Cowboys were opening the season tomorrow, Lance would be third on the depth chart behind Prescott and Rush. Lance hasn’t pushed the ball down the field much. It’ll be interesting to see how that changes as camp goes along."

Lance has been intercepted twice in four practices. One of those was on a dropped pass from running back Deuce Vaughn, but Lance didn't cover himself in glory on the play. The reluctance to push the ball downfield that Machota mentioned was evident on the turnover.

On the second INT, rookie corner Caelen Carson made a terrific grab. However, Lance left the ball inside as opposed to lofting it more toward the sideline to remove at least one of the two defenders. That allowed Carson to make a play on the ball.

In Lance's defense, this is his most significant workload in quite some time. He hardly saw any practice reps last year after the trade as he studied the playbook. It stands to reason that he'll look like a capable QB with more reps, but it is fair to be disappointed in his play.

Lance's confidence needs to come a long way between now and the start of preseason and his processing in camp has been less than ideal. The fact multiple Cowboys insiders have been underwhelmed suggests Mike McCarthy and the rest of the coaching staff feel the same way.

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