Good, Bad and Ugly from Cowboys Preseason Week 1: What to Make of Trey Lance's Debut

The Dallas Cowboys lost their grip on a preseason Week 1 victory on the final snap of Sunday's game, falling 13-12 to the Los Angeles Rams. The stars on both sides had the day off, but there remained plenty to take away from the Cowboys' first dress rehearsal of the 2024 campaign.

The focus of this game was clearly on Trey Lance. The Cowboys got their run in with Cooper Rush on the first drive, but handed the keys to their third-stringer for his first test in a Cowboys uniform.

Here's the good, the bad and the ugly from Lance's debut and the rest of the Cowboys' showing in their first preseason matchup.

The Good — Markquese Bell Back at His Natural Position: Bell helped sustain a decimated linebackers unit last season, moving down from the secondary and acting as a pseudo-linebacker as needed. He certainly had his moments but a glaring size difference in most situations made him a fish out of water at times in 2023.

That was not the case Sunday, finishing with a team-leading nine tackles and an interception. His move back to safety comes as a result of the revitalization of the linebacker core, allowing the spotlight to shine on those who have shown they belong and can excel at the spot, namely DeMarvion Overshown who thrived in limited action.

The Bad — Trey Lance Underwhelms in Dallas Debut: Lance's running ability remains his best asset, shown in his various scrambles and runs that accumulated 44 yards. As a passer though, his timing looked off and his reads came late. He failed to lead the Cowboys' offense into the end zone once despite a drive that reached the Rams' three yard line.

If he has those struggles against second- and third-string players, how will he stack up against a real NFL defense if needed?

In fairness to Lance, he has not played an NFL snap in nearly two years before this game and the proclamation that the backup spot was his to lose does not help matters. The fact remains he has to show more than he did against the Rams.

Related: Cowboys OT Leaves Preseason Opener with Injury

The Ugly — Plenty of Field Goals, Very Little Red-Zone Execution: The preseason serves a greater purpose than tallying wins and loses. But the way this contest played out over 60 minutes, the Cowboys should have come away with a victory.

Dallas intercepted Stetson Bennett four times, moved the ball into the red zone on its first three drives and snapped the ball in Rams' territory on all but one possession. They came away with 12 points.

Surely a part of that comes from the nature of this game and the level of players competing compared to a normal Cowboys game day. More likely than not, having Prescott and his normal slew of receivers fixes that issue, but the red zone struggles became a narrative early in 2023.

The loss serves a good reminder about taking advantage of opportunities and finishing drives.