Moronic trade proposal has Cowboys selling Trey Lance with stock at all-time low

It's open for interpretation what the Dallas Cowboys plans are for Trey Lance.

What can't be argued, however, is that the Cowboys capitalized on a gorgeous buy-low opportunity on a potential lottery ticket and rescued Lance from a seemingly untenable situation with the San Francisco 49ers.

In a perfect world, Dak Prescott leads Dallas to a Super Bowl and the Cowboys offload Lance to a quarterback-needy team a year or two down the road. Still just 23 years old, Lance can still carve out a nice career for himself in the NFL.

With the Cowboys, he can do that without the pressure of being the No. 3 overall pick whom San Francisco mortgaged its future for. There'd be little sense in trying to move Lance now. Odds are the string-pullers in the front office know this.

But ESPN's Bill Barnwell sees a window for Dallas to cash in on its lottery ticket ... with its value at rock-bottom. In an article proposing 15 deals before the NFL trade deadline (subscription required), Barnwell had the Cowboys shipping Lance to the midwest.

Cowboys deal Trey Lance to Broncos in absurd trade proposal

What exactly would this accomplish? While the Cowboys could use another linebacker with Leighton Vander Esch out at least the next three games, Markquese Bell has filled the void better than anyone could have expected. He was one of the defense's top performers in the 20-17 win against the Chargers in Week 6.

Additionally, Dallas recently signed veteran Rashaan Evans. With the bye to get acclimated to Dan Quinn's scheme, it stands to reason that Evans will be active in Week 8 when the Cowboys host the Los Angeles Rams.

Again, another LB wouldn't hurt, but trading Lance for a middling veteran in Singleton reeks of desperation. It would defeat the purpose of acquiring Lance in the first place and Singleton currently owns a 55.5 player grade from Pro Football Focus. He's been solid against the run, but his coverage statistics are worrying.

Per PFF, Singleton's allowed 30 catches on 33 targets for 265 yards (a whopping 215 after the catch) and three touchdowns. He's also missed 11 tackles, which is tied for second-most at the position. Only the Colts' Zaire Franklin has more with 12.

If the Cowboys want a Broncos linebacker, Josey Jewell should be the pick. He's markedly more reliable in coverage (he's allowed more than 100 fewer yards) and grades out better than Singleton in every metric. Again, though, we wouldn't trade Lance to make it happen.

That's not to say the former 49er is long for Dallas, but the 1-5 Broncos are most likely going to draft a quarterback with a high pick in April. Even if Russell Wilson is benched this season, they have vet backup Jarrett Stidham waiting in the wings after they signed him to a two-year, $10 million contract in free agency.

Nothing about Barwell's proposal makes sense for the Cowboys.

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