The Dallas Cowboys quarterback depth saw turnover this offseason. Backup Cooper Rush signed a two-year deal worth $6.2 million with the Baltimore Ravens. Dallas also let third-string quarterback Tray Lance walk.
Although the former No.3 overall pick seemed to be headed to the Canadian Football League, an NFL team provided him one last chance. On April 4, the Los Angeles Chargers signed Lance to a one-year deal. While the full contract details weren't available when he signed, they are now.
On Tuesday, it was revealed that Lance signed a one-year deal worth up to $6.2 million with a base salary of $2.045 million. Given that Lance is unlikely to see the field, it's telling that Dallas didn't try and retain Lance for just over $2 million in 2025.
New from me: numbers from the #Chargers Trey Lance deal are in.
— Alex Insdorf (@alexinsdorf99) April 9, 2025
-$2.045M in base (Taylor Heinicke is at $2.5M)
-Roughly 57% of that $2.045M is guaranteed for Lance-it puts him at about $1.16M guaranteed compared to Heinicke's $2M
He's locked in as QB3. https://t.co/hiVTqfosOL
Trey Lance's Chargers Contract Proves Dallas Didn't Believe in Him
During the 2023 offseason, the Cowboys traded a fourth-round pick to acquire Lance from the San Francisco 49ers. Since Lance was traded after two preseason games in 2023, he didn't see the field with the Cowboys until the 2024 preseason.
In three appearances, the 24-year-old completed 64^% (73/113) of his passes for 662 yards, two touchdowns and five interceptions. Lance's interception troubles are likely part of the reason Dallas gave up on him.
That said, since high school, Lance has played just 36 games at quarterback, with only 22 of them being as the starter. It's clear that Lance needs to play to improve, so the Chargers giving him a one-year contract to be their third-string QB doesn't make much sense.
Nevertheless, the fact Dallas wasn't willing to give up $2 million for Lance to be their backup and instead traded for Joe Milton, which shows how the relationship deteriorated on both sides.