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Trey Lance has barely seen the field ever since the San Francisco 49ers drafted him 3rd overall in 2021. Widely believed to become the new face of that franchise, he instead languished behind Jimmy Garoppolo, then Brock Purdy and Sam Darnold, before being traded to the Dallas Cowboys.
There, he has remained stuck well behind Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush, raising serious questions about his viability as a starter in the future. However, sportscaster Rich Eisen has an idea for where he should end up.
Speaking on his eponymous show on Monday, he pitched the Minnesota Vikings, who are facing the possible loss of Kirk Cousins in free agency, trading for the North Dakota State alum and solving their QB1 problem (go to 2:03 for start):
"I heard this rumor that a possible salve at quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings is a native of the state and his name is Trey Lance. Now the Cowboys picked up, kept him on the roster long enough for him to get a bonus. So they're paying the money to keep him and they you know, got him for a five. I'm just wondering if the Vikings flip him at three, a Friday night pick?"
There, however, is a snag to that plan. Lance was recently confirmed to be staying with the Cowboys, who will give him his $4.25-million roster bonus, according to the Dallas Morning News' Calvin Watkins.
Exploring how Trey Lance possibly joining Vikings will influence QB's career
Assuming that the Trey Lance trade happens for the Vikings, what roster situation will he inherit?
First, the pros. He gets to work with a pair of top-shelf wide receivers in Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. The former has been nothing but historically prolific since arriving in the league in 2020, setting a league-record 98.3 yards per game. Meanwhile, the latter has emerged as a great complement in the vein of now-Carolina Panther Adam Thielen. And that is not to mention tight end TJ Hockenson, who provides a tertiary passing option.
On the contrary, however, Lance will enter the team with no credible rushing option. After Dalvin Cook was released in the 2023 offseason, Alexander Mattison was elevated to starter, but failed to live up to his predecessor's production and was himself released halfway into his contract. Midseason acquisition Cam Akers, meanwhile, hurt his left Achilles just as he was starting to make an impact; and he will be a free agent on top of that.
