Jerry Jones caused a stir, but the Trey Lance narrative is misguided

People cannot stop talking about it. I cannot stop writing about it. Maybe we are all simply damaged goods on this topic.
It’s entirely possible that the Cowboys’ and Dolphins’ trade of disappointing cornerbacks at the cutdown deadline Tuesday will play a more significant role in Dallas’ season than Friday’s draft pick trade for quarterback Trey Lance. That doesn’t make a discussion of Noah Igbinoghene’s suspect hands more interesting.
It was five days after the Lance trade Wednesday morning and the fine folks at Get Up were dissecting Dak Prescott and his make-or-break 2023 season one more time. Then on First Take, they talked Dak and Trey Lance for another 16 minutes to open the show. I understand how ESPN works, believe me. They aren’t opening any shows with Titans talk. If the Cowboys are in the news, you talk about the Cowboys as long as possible. If the Cowboys aren’t in the news, you manufacture a Cowboys topic and bleed that dry. It’s the same with LeBron James. It’s how ESPN sees the sports world, and I get it.
But it’s the incredulity in the national narrative about all this, the “how can Jerry Jones do this deal without telling his coach or his quarterback” that makes me question people’s sanity or at least wonder if they have been watching how things operate in Dallas the last 30 years. As for Mike McCarthy, he had already expressed how he felt about the player. Jerry and Stephen Jones were fully aware of the Cowboy scouts’ evaluation of Lance coming out of North Dakota State for the 2021 draft. There weren’t any great mysteries to resolve before sending a fourth-round pick to the 49ers for a quarterback with potential who had not found a way to unlock it in San Francisco.
Too many of us get caught up in Parcells-isms, thinking everything the former Cowboys coach uttered is football gospel. One in particular: “If they want you to cook the dinner, they ought to let you shop for some of the groceries.”
A fun saying, but not grounded in reality. Parcells won two Super Bowls as a head coach in New York when GM George Young, much to Big Bill’s dislike, was in charge. When Parcells gained more commanding roles in New England and with the Jets … no more rings. Same goes for almost every other coach who has managed to secure GM-like authority.
As for Prescott, why does anyone think Jones should have called Dak to let him know? That would be the very opposite of making sense. If you’re so worried about how Dak is going to feel about Trey Lance arriving on the scene, you see your starting quarterback as a fragile entity. If Dak’s seven years of starting experience and $40 million average annual salary don’t give him the confidence to maintain his job over a guy with four NFL starts and uninspired stats, then you have a major problem at the key position.
Beyond that, to call Dak, to inform him you are trading for Trey Lance makes the deal bigger than it is. It’s like telling him: “This kid hasn’t done anything yet, but watch your back, he’s our future.” And the Cowboys don’t know any of that, probably assume that’s highly unlikely barring Prescott suffering a significant injury in 2024 or beyond.
Now, I’m not defending the way the Jones Boys do business, I think you know that by now. No team should be guided by a general manager who has the job for life. Only one club in the NFL operates that way. I‘ve said that many times and can’t imagine ever viewing their organizational flow chart as one that makes sense. But we know all that, and this Lance trade hardly serves as “breaking news” on that front.
What I think Jones may have in mind is something entirely different, again slightly usurping the authority of his head coach which is sad, but nothing new. Why did Dallas do this deal? I think Jerry Jones believes in Dak, and means what he says when he tells the world he wouldn’t want anyone else at the position (at least wouldn’t want anyone else available).
But what else does Jones think about? Consider his relationship with Broncos coach Sean Payton. I never thought Jones was going to hire Payton when he was a free agent for two years after leaving the Saints — too much money, too much of a power struggle waiting to happen. But is it possible that Jones sees Lance, whose running skills are his most developed attribute, as a Taysom Hill-type player for the Dallas offense as early as this season?
Hill is a part-time tight end, part-time quarterback that Payton fell in love with even before Drew Brees had finished his Hall of Fame career. Whether it’s running wildcat formation plays or providing other tricks, Hill was effective enough for Payton to keep going back to him for about three years.
”I believe everything happens for a reason,” Lance told reporters Tuesday. “Regardless of what it is, I just want to try to find some way to help the team.”
If Jones envisions any role for Lance in the near future, it is as a wild card. A player with minimal college experience and just 102 NFL passes on his résumé isn’t coming here to secure a starting role. No one needed to be consulted or coddled while making this trade happen.