How Dallas Cowboys QB Trey Lance performed in preseason opener

Trey Lance enjoyed a few bright moments and more frustrating ones during his Dallas Cowboys debut, but the 24-year-old quarterback can take one clear benefit from his performance Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams: He now has game experience in coach Mike McCarthy’s offense.

Lance, a 2021 first-round pick of the 49ers, joined Dallas via a trade last August. He arrived too late to participate in the Cowboys’ preseason and spent the regular season on the bench behind Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush.

That’s part of the reason the eyes of many fans were fixed on Lance during Sunday’s 13-12 loss to the Rams. His results under the spotlight were mixed.

He finished 25-for-41 passing for 188 yards (4.6 per attempt) and no touchdowns or interceptions. He also ran six times for 44 yards. Lance’s passer rating of 72 was far below his mark in either of his two outings with the 49ers last preseason.

After Rush started at quarterback and connected with receiver Jalen Brooks on a 43-yard deep ball during his only drive, Lance took over on Dallas’ second possession.

And with Lance behind center the rest of the game, the Cowboys offense lacked the same explosion it showed in a brief stint with Rush on the field.

Lance scampered out of the pocket for a 19-yard gain at one point in the first half and showed general elusiveness in the face of pressure. But little else seemed to go his way. In the first half, the fourth-year pro struggled to find open receivers at times and missed one throw that could’ve led to a touchdown.

On a fourth-and-goal at the 1, Cowboys wide receiver Jalen Cropper broke free in the back of the end zone while sprinting from Lance’s right to his left. Lance lofted a high-arcing pass that sailed a few inches out of Cropper’s reach and fell out of bounds for an incompletion. Opportunity missed.

The Cowboys settled into a pattern after that, with Lance occasionally bouncing off of defenders and making plays with his legs but rarely completing sharp throws downfield.

He did seem to generate a semblance of a rhythm on a Dallas drive midway through the fourth quarter. Lance completed four straight passes, including one that converted a third-and-9 and another that went for 26 yards. For that big play, Lance whipped the ball across the middle, and receiver Kelvin Harmon leapt high to pull down an impressive catch.

Despite several highlights, Lance failed to steer the Cowboys into the end zone during his three-and-a-half quarters on the field.

This probably won’t be his last opportunity to prove his worth this month, though.

Because Prescott and Rush are proven commodities, Lance will likely continue to play plenty over the final two weeks of the preseason. In that sense, his 41 pass attempts Sunday were simply a first act in a Cowboys game uniform.

He might need to fare better in his next ones in order to resurrect his NFL career.