Report updates what Cowboys' Trey Lance improved after ankle injury

In a story published on Thursday, Todd Archer of ESPN detailed how private quarterback coach Jeff Christensen has helped Dallas Cowboys quarterback Trey Lance following Lance's gruesome ankle injury that caused him to need multiple surgeries in 2022.

"The major change was to his footwork," Archer said about Lance's development. "Christensen wanted Lance to be more 'violent' with his lower body. And a slight change in his grip took away pain he had felt in his arm."

Archer noted that "Lance and Christensen partnered up 15 months ago" when the 24-year-old was recovering from his ankle injury with the San Francisco 49ers after Brock Purdy had emerged as San Francisco's full-time starting signal-caller when healthy. Lance ultimately lost the primary backup job with the 49ers to Sam Darnold, and San Francisco traded Lance to Dallas last August.

Lance spent his first season with the Cowboys as an inactive backup, and he'll compete with Cooper Rush for Dallas' QB2 job from training camp through the preseason. 

Christensen mentioned that he's "had numerous discussions with" Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy, offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer and quarterbacks coach Scott Tolzien about what they'd like to see from Lance during upcoming exhibition games.

"I have to deliver that and be a voice for them," Christensen explained. "If there's a certain way you drop with your feet, or reading things inside out or outside in, or high-to-low or low-to-high, or how you move in the pocket. I can always tweak up what I do to match what they need because they're the coach."

While some believe Lance could eventually replace Dallas starter Dak Prescott because Prescott remains on track to reach free agency after the upcoming season, it's possible that Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones could make wholesale changes if McCarthy fails to guide the club to at least the NFC Championship Game this coming January.

Former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick reportedly "intends to coach in 2025," has been linked with the Cowboys since this past winter and probably wouldn't want to start an unproven commodity at quarterback such as Lance considering the living legend will be 73 years old next summer.