Cowboys will retain former first-round pick

The latter will remain with the team through the 2024 campaign, Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News reports. The Cowboys will therefore pay out a $4.25M roster bonus, which is due five days after the start of training camp. 

In all, Dallas will owe the former No. 3 pick $5.31M, a figure which notably dwarfs the compensation backup Cooper Rush is set to receive ($2.25M).

Lance entered the league with considerable expectations given the trade haul spent by the 49ers to move up and select him in 2021. He entered his second campaign atop the depth chart, but a season-ending injury limited him to just a pair of games. 

Brock Purdy‘s performance after that point made Lance expendable, and he was dealt to the Cowboys in August. Acquired for only a fourth-round pick, the 23-year-old received a fresh start in the process, although he did not see any regular-season action.

Friday’s news means Lance will be in place for the coming campaign, but Watkins unsurprisingly adds the Cowboys will not exercise his 2025 fifth-year option. 

Doing so would have locked the team into a $22.41M salary that season, far more than he will be worth presuming he remains on the sidelines for the foreseeable future. 

Lance can nevertheless turn his attention to an offseason competition with Rush for the QB2 spot while Dallas continues to work out a deal keeping Prescott in place for years to come.

Rush is on track for free agency in 2025. The former UDFA has made 26 appearances and six starts during his Cowboys tenure, which dates back to 2017. 

Lance will join him in a similar capacity from a financial standpoint after spending a season as a developmental third option on the QB depth chart. 

It will be interesting to see if Dallas will again keep three passers on the active roster and if so, which one will earn the backup job during training camp and the preseason. 

Especially if he wins the No. 2 gig, Lance will have the opportunity to continue the Cowboys chapter of his career through 2024.