The Dallas Cowboys received the worst possible news about Dak Prescott’s injury. After seeking multiple opinions, the quarterback will be out for the remainder of the 2024 season with a partially torn hamstring for which he will undergo surgery, as reported by Adam Schefter.

That was a possibility all week after Prescott went down in the team’s Week 9 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. The quarterback sought separate medical opinions about his options regarding the hamstring injury. And while that process appears to be continuing as he sees a specialist, his season is now officially over.

As of now, longtime backup Cooper Rush is slated to start in Week 10 against the rival Philadelphia Eagles and, by proxy, is penciled in as the Cowboys’ starter for the rest of the season. That, however, would be a mistake considering Dallas also has Trey Lance in the quarterback room.

Up until this point, the Cowboys trading a fourth-round pick for Lance last season seemed absurd. He wasn’t the main backup, wasn’t active on the 53-man game day roster, and his preseason work left a lot to be desired. And yet, the most obvious decision for him and Dallas is for him to be the starter.

With all due respect to Rush, who was 5-1 as a starter in his career with Dallas when forced into action, what do the Cowboys gain by inserting him into the lineup? The team is 3-5 on the season and has shown all kinds of cause for concern with Prescott under center. This will only get worse with a backup in the fold, no matter who it is.

When it comes to Lance, however, he remains an almost completely unknown commodity. Since being drafted third overall by the 49ers, the book on the North Dakota State product has been that he simply needs reps to become the player San Francisco thought he could be when they drafted him in the Top 5. This is the best. opportunity to still get those reps.

Part of the pushback to playing Lance right now could be the fact that he’s a free agent after this season, and as such, the Cowboys might not gain anything by playing him. This, however, is short-sighted. If he were to come in and make strides, he could again be an option to bring back and potentially be a much better backup than Rush to Prescott in the next year or two.

Furthermore, if Lance succeeds when given the opportunity, it will only increase his value on the free agent market, which in turn could give the Cowboys a more valuable compensatory pick if he signed with another team. This might actually be the best possible outcome for Dallas given their need for young talent and while they are already committed long-term to Prescott.

None of these benefits, however, occur if Rush is the starter over Lance with Prescott free. He’s an obvious choice for what the Cowboys should be doing now, even if it’s just past Week 10, as the Rush were getting ready to play against Philly.