Stephen Jones doubles down on Dallas Cowboys failed trade

The Dallas Cowboys don't seem to learn from their mistakes, which was all but confirmed by Stephen Jones.

Randy Gurzi | Nov 23, 2024

Dallas Cowboys chief operating officer and co-owner Stephen Jones / Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images

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When Brock Purdy took over as the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, Trey Lance was left without a spot. That led to a trade with the Dallas Cowboys, who sent a fourth-round pick to the 49ers for the former North Dakota State quarterback.

Adding Lance wasn't a bad idea on the surface, since he was the No. 3 overall pick in 2021. The problem was that Dallas gave up a fourth-round pick when it appeared there were no serious contenders for Lance.

The trade doesn't look any better given the fact that Lance is sitting on the bench while Cooper Rush starts in place of an injured Dak Prescott.

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Despite this, Stephen Jones believes the team made the right move. While speaking on 105.3 The Fan, he even said they would do the trade again.

Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones on @1053thefan when asked about getting the return on investment in trading for Trey Lance:

“Yeah, we’d do that again. He’s a top tier pick. A guy we had at the top. Dak (Prescott) was coming up for contract. We wanted to take a look at a good, young…
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) November 22, 2024

Ironically enough, the Cowboys said repeatedly that adding Lance had nothing to do with Dak Prescott. Now, Jones is admitting that was a factor in their decision.

Dallas also never truly gave Lance an opportunity. He was the inactive third quarterback all season in 2023, with Rush playing in garbage time games. Not only did they get no look at him during his first season with the franchise, but he's now only played in spot duty.