Cowboys' Mike McCarthy highlights this aspect of Trey Lance's preseason outing; QB reflects on his own play

It wasn't that long ago that Trey Lance was the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers . As he enters his fourth year in the league, he has just eight starts under his belt and is not close to regaining his role as QB1.

The former No. 3 overall pick didn't play at all last year in his first season with the Dallas Cowboys , and as he enters his second year with the team, head coach Mike McCarthy said the 24-year-old still has a lot to work on.

Lance got the majority of snaps in Sunday's preseason game against the Los Angeles Rams , going in after Cooper Rush got the start. McCarthy said he gave Lance a lot of snaps because he needed them, explaining that time and repetition will help the QB.

"Trying to get as much as I can with him," McCarthy said, via ESPN . "You want to see him running the offense at a high level. The footwork and some of the things we're asking him to do conceptually are new. We just need work. We just need as much time as we can. I know I say that every time I talk about him, but he's making good progress. He's definitely wired the right way. He's a great athlete. Just a lot of work to do."

Lance went 25 of 41 passing for 188 yards with no touchdowns, but he didn't throw any interceptions. It wasn't an incredible performance by any means, but his head coach was happy with what he saw.

"I really liked his command," McCarthy said. "Frankly, I tried to ... take advantage of every situation that we were in, so those fourth-down snaps, those will pay dividends in the future. I do believe that."

Lance also evaluated his work, saying he needs to improve in the red zone, and noted that he's "excited" to watch the tape.

"I think I left some plays out there for sure across the board from the first quarter to the fourth," he said. "We get the four extra possessions, and we don't score touchdowns. That's not a good feeling."

As it stands right now, Lance is the third-string quarterback, meaning that just like last year he probably won't see any playing time. These preseason reps are crucial for him to improve and get that game experience, considering he probably won't get much, or any, during the season. The Cowboys starter, of course, remains Dak Prescott .