Grading a Packers-Cowboys trade to give Green Bay Jordan Love insurance

We all witnessed Jordan Love spank the Dallas Cowboys on national television in the NFL Playoffs. Now, a few months later, we could see the Green Bay Packers poach reinforcements from their slain enemy. That is according to the latest trade hypothetical from Bleacher Report's Alex Ballentine.

With the Packers in need of QB depth and the Cowboys looking to extend Dak Prescott, the perfect confluence of circumstances could spark a trade between bitter NFC enemies. The proposal is rather simple: Dallas coughs up Trey Lance in exchange for a fourth-round pick (No. 126), which is exactly what the Cowboys gave up to acquire Lance a year ago.

"Right now, the Packers have Sean Clifford. The fifth-round pick only had three pass attempts in reserve duty as a rookie, but it's safe to say that he doesn't have the same ceiling as Lance, who is a former No. 3 pick with tantalizing physical traits... It's at least worth it for the Packers to give the Cowboys a call. At worst, Lance plays out the final year of his contract and leaves in 2025. At best, he shows improvement and either becomes the long-term backup or brings back an even higher pick in a trade down the road."

Now... let's pull out the grade book and dive into this fascinating proposal.

Grading proposed Packers-Cowboys trade for Trey Lance

The Packers land Trey Lance to back up Jordan Love. He's undoubtedly an upgrade over Sean Clifford, and a fourth-round pick isn't worth losing sleep over. So, on paper, it's a logical move. Lance was the No. 3 pick back in 2021, with dual-threat ability and live-wire athleticism that still carries meaningful upside.

That said, Ballentine's explanation — essentially citing Clifford's lack of experience — doesn't fully add up. Lance has 102 pass attempts to his name through three NFL seasons. He did not register a single pass attempt last season; that's three fewer than Clifford did. The Cowboys planted Lance on the bench, behind NFL journeyman Cooper Rush and their real starter.

Lance would move up the pecking order in Green Bay, but he's hardly a "proven" backup. Lance is a great concept, and yes, the upside is probably worth a gamble. Billing the 23-year-old as a top-tier backup, however, is a stretch. That will be especially true if Lance sits behind Love all season and never gets a chance to play. If Lance spends well over half of his rookie contract glued to the bench, it's hard to imagine a bidding war materializing.

So, maybe a fourth-round pick is a little much. The Packers could just as easily burn a day-two or day three pick on the likes of Spencer Rattler or Jordan Travis. Why not land a rookie who hasn't fumbled every NFL opportunity to date? Lance's unfortunate demise in San Francisco wasn't entirely his fault, but he still lost the QB job to Mr. Irrelevant. That is the cold, hard truth. Brock Purdy was better than expected, but even so, Lance couldn't beat out Cooper Rush for the QB2 gig in Dallas either.

We all made fun of the Cowboys for using a fourth-round pick on Lance last season. They didn't exactly justify the investment, and this trade would qualify as an admission of defeat from Jerry Jones. If the Cowboys are ready to throw in the towel on Lance's development with Prescott's future hanging in the balance, the Packers should not bail them out at the same price. Maybe a fifth or sixth-round pick can do it. Green Bay has to drive a harder bargain.

The idealized concept of Lance is quite appealing, but we simply haven't seen it at the NFL level yet. And, we can be honest, the dude played at North Dakota State. He has never really proven his mettle against top-shelf competition. Sometimes the mid-major QB just doesn't have it.

Green Bay can probably do better. Spencer Rattler is the obvious value pick as far as the 2024 draft is concerned. Perhaps that is where Green Bay should focus its resources.

Packers grade: C
Cowboys grade: B+