INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Oh sure, the Cowboys wanted to win. Anytime you play, and whatever you play, you want to win.
But Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy didn't make that a high priority here Sunday afternoon and SoFi Stadium when the Rams rallied with four seconds remaining to nail down a 13-12 victory in preseason game No. 1.
Look, start with the Cowboys suiting up 66 players, meaning 25 guys did not play, including nearly all the veteran starters and those missing with minor injuries. Name a starter that comes to mind, any of them, bet the guy didn't play.
Then there was eschewing potential field goals to go for it five times on fourth down, picking up just two, not as gambles, but giving McCarthy's offense further opportunities to run plays. And this included a fourth-and-1 at the 3-yard line in a 3-3 game with 9 seconds left in the first quarter that didn't quite work out. Or how about, with a what-the-heck approach, sending Brandon Aubrey out for a 65-yard field goal. Hey, it's preseason.
All this, including playing Cowboys backup quarterback Cooper Rush only the six snaps of the first offensive series of the game before turning the reins over to the inexperienced Trey Lance, who was getting his first game snaps of any kind with the Cowboys. That was the plan.
And that might have been the most significant accomplishment in this game since of the 70 times the Cowboys snapped the ball, Lance took 64 for them. Perhaps the next of those accomplishments was McCarthy playing every single player with pads on, to the point had to check myself on a couple of numbers, like No. 43 being linebacker Kamen Hall, whose name didn't even make the numerical list on the flip card, No. 33 being linebacker Julius Wood and No. 39 being safety Emany Johnson.
Now, some highlights included the Cowboys defense intercepting first-year quarterback Stetson Bennett four times with a fifth that would have sealed the game with 1:39 left except the Cowboys, leading 12-6, had the pick nullified for defensive holding nowhere near where the pass was thrown. Why, the defense stymied the Rams offensive backups, holding them to just 246 total yards until giving up those 70 and the go-ahead touchdown during the game-winning drive.
Yet, let's not lose sight of just what was the main priority in this game, and really the next two as well: Giving Lance enough snaps to make the educated assessment they must after trading for him right before the start of the 2023 season since San Francisco's former first-round pick is entering the final year of his rookie contract. So not only needing to make a decision for the short term, but expressly for the long term, too.
Just who is this 24-year-old quarterback?
Considered that box checked in this first preseason game, Lance throwing 41 passes. When asked if he remembered the last time he threw that many passes in one game, he told me, "Not too many times."
Well, not during his previous three NFL seasons, preseason or regular season. Check this out: In six games during his rookie season with the Niners, Lance only attempted 71 passes combined, and never more than 29 in a game. During the preseason that year, he had just 41 in three games. And in his injury-shortened 2022 campaign, he had only five in his one preseason game and just 31 in his two regular-season games before breaking a bone in his ankle.
And if we go back to his college career at North Dakota State, Lance never attempted more than 31 passes in any of his 19 games. That's it, a very inexperienced quarterback who the 49ers selected third overall in 2021 NFL Draft. And guessing since he was considered a dual-threat quarterback at Marshall (Minn.) High School and was being recruited as a wide receiver before signing with NDSU, he wasn't being asked to throw 41 passes in a game, attempting only 420 during his high school career.
Also consider this: Not since Sept. 18, 2022, has Lance played in a real regular-season game, and not since Aug. 19, 2023, had he played in any game until this preseason outing with the Cowboys. This is a very inexperienced quarterback. Hey, at least he did not throw four interceptions as the Rams' No. 3 did.
So, come on, let's be reasonable. Let's not become too critical of his performance against LA on Sunday, completing 25 of 41 passes for just 188 yards, no touchdowns but also no interceptions, for a QB rating of 72.0. Just hasn't played that much quarterback during his entire football career, and probably would have done himself a huge favor if he had played another season for the Bisons.
"Those 40 passes will pay dividends," McCarthy said, and would go on to point out, "There are things we need to work on. … He needs work, needs as much time as we can give him."
Lance's performance Sunday sort of mimicked what we've been watching in training camp. When he misses, he normally is missing high. At times he holds the ball too long or stares down his receivers, causing me to shake my head. But at other times, he drops dimes. And as he did on his final drive, hitting his back foot and firing darts, having completed passes during that series for 12, 12, 26 and 6 yards, leading to kicker Brandon Aubrey's fourth field goal and a 12-6 Cowboys lead.
Leaving me thinking, OK, maybe there is something there to unearth with a little more work with this guy. And as Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said in his pregame segment on Countdown To Kickoff, "We just need to see him in the pocket." And they did.
Let's also remember, Lance was playing with second- and third-team offensive linemen as well as mostly wide receivers and tight ends likely to end up on the practice squad.
"I think I left some plays out there for sure, across the board from the first quarter to the fourth," Lance said of his self-critique. "When we get the ball those four extra possessions (interceptions) and don't get touchdowns, that's not a good thing.
"I'll learn a ton from it. I'll learn from the tape. We want to score touchdowns for sure."
Sure, they do. But with a game of any kind now under his Cowboys helmet, can't wait for preseason game No. 2.
