Blockbuster Cowboys Trade Pitch Sees Dallas Losing Quarterback

The Dallas Cowboys have some time to make a trade before the November 5 deadline, and one NFL analyst and expert has an idea of who he thinks they should trade. In a September 30 feature for FanSided, Nick Villano named one player from each NFL team who he believes should be traded at the 2024 trade deadline. For the Cowboys, Villano suggests to trade a quarterback who has been with the team for years.

NFL Analyst Says Cowboys Quarterback is ‘About to Have No Value to the Cowboys’

In the feature, Villano says the Cowboys “have to look to the future,” and that means looking at their stable of quarterbacks. They currently have franchise quarterback Dak Prescott and backup quarterbacks Cooper Rush and Trey Lance.

“They have two pretty good quarterbacks playing behind Dak Prescott, who will likely have no role with this team except as insurance,” Villano noted. “It’s totally fine to have one such quarterback holding the clipboard who can step in at any time. Two is excessive, especially when it’s been going on for two seasons.”

That’s where Rush comes into play. Rush joined the Cowboys in 2017. He was claimed off waivers by the New York Giants in May 2020 but resigned with the Cowboys that October and has been with Dallas ever since.

Despite Rush’s years of time with the Cowboys, Villano says it’s time to let him go.

“Cooper Rush doesn’t have the value he once had, but he’s about to have no value to the Cowboys,” Villano stated. “After Dallas signed Prescott to the richest quarterback contract this offseason, there’s no real value to developing two quarterbacks behind. It especially makes no sense to develop one who’s making top-of-the-market money for a backup. Rush is making $2.5 million right now, but he has a chance to make much more when he becomes a free agent this offseason.”

Villano added, “Trading Rush now would give the Cowboys some kind of asset without really losing anything of value. With Trey Lance on the roster, Rush is just an asset worth shopping.”

Cooper Rush is Second in Line to Dak Prescott

One caveat in Villano’s idea is that Rush is the Cowboys’ No. 2 quarterback behind Prescott.

“Mike McCarthy made it official. Cooper Rush is the Cowboys backup quarterback,” All City DLLS’ Clarence Hill Jr. said a September 2, 2024, message on X. “Trey Lance made tremendous strides and they want to continue to develop him. But Rush is QB2, as expected.”

McCarthy also said good things about Lance, while acknowledging that Rush is their No. 2 man.

“Cooper’s taken the No. 2 reps this week, but I felt very encouraged and really excited with the growth that Trey took through the whole process,” McCarthy said on September 2. “I feel like I answer the question the same way every time. We just got to continue to develop him. You can see the things that he’s really focused on. The concept, footwork and things like that. It got better each week throughout the preseason.”

He added, “I thought he did a great job extending plays with his legs. Made some plays in the quarterback run phase of it. Just trying to continue that drop back passing. So, he’s making strides, and I don’t know if there is anyone on our team that benefitted more from the preseason than Trey Lance.”