INGLEWOOD, Calif. — The wait to see Trey Lance in action in a Cowboys uniform came to an end on Sunday, as the former No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft took the field in the game's second drive and did not relinquish his duties – posting a 25-for-41 line for 188 yards and 44 rushing yards.
While Lance's 4.6 yards per attempt left much to be desired, the newest Dallas signal-caller didn't make any mistakes either. Sunday served as an opportunity for him to get his feet back in the pocket, even if it ended a losing result.
"It was good," Lance said about getting back on the field for the first time since last preseason. "It was exciting. Anytime we win the turnover battle four-to-nothing, I'd hope we win the game, so definitely got to score more points. But it was fun being back out there, for sure. I had fun."
The past year has been used as a developmental time for Lance and his skillset under head coach Mike McCarthy and quarterbacks coach Scott Tolzien. That knowledge-intake ramped up even more during the course of Sunday's game.
"I think I learned a ton from it," he said. "We were efficient in and out of the huddle. It was a ton of fun to go out and compete and feel the energy in the huddle with those guys."
"I left some plays out there, for sure. Across the board, from the first quarter to the fourth. We get the ball four extra possessions and we don't score touchdowns, that's not a good feeling. It was a ton of fun. I learned a ton from it."
One of those plays that Lance left out there was a fourth down play in the first quarter inside the five that Lance sailed just out of the reach of Jalen Cropper in the end zone. For him, the correction there is simple.
"Just make the throw," Lance said. "I think it's just kind of a feel. You feel it as the game progresses and I thought good decisions, bad decisions, it's things I gotta see on tape."
Driving down the field could be viewed as a positive for Lance coming out of preseason game number-one. Just as he's done in two-minute drills in practice during training camp, Lance hasn't had many issues getting into scoring range – it's about capitalizing now.
"We put some 10, 11-play drives together, it just sucks that we didn't finish them," he said. "I got to be better in that area, in the red zone."
