The Dallas Cowboys traded for Trey Lance last season in hopes they could tap into the talent that made him the third overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. In this preseason matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders, he finally gave a glimpse of that potential.
Entering the game in the second quarter, Lance would lead the Cowboys to a 27-12 victory over the Raiders behind a pair of scoring drives. He completed 15 of 23 passes on the night for 151 yards and a touchdown to finish with a 98.3 passer rating. Just for good measure, he also added a rushing touchdown and tied for the team lead with 34 yards on the ground.
Overall, the Cowboys recorded 294 yards of offense, which included 137 rushing yards as a group. Deuce Vaughn sat out the preseason opener at the Rams due to injury, but he made up for it with an impressive showing in Las Vegas. The second-year man shook and shifted for 34 yards on five carries, an impressive 6.8 yards per carry average.
Mike Zimmer’s defense again was effective. While the unit allowed the Raiders to total 315 yards of offense, Dallas only allowed one touchdown for the second straight week. Cornerback Andrew Booth led the Cowboys with eight tackles with safety Juanyeh Thomas shining in limited action with a pair of pass breakups.
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First Quarter Although the Raiders began the game with their first-stringers while Dallas went largely with backups, the reserves held their own against the starters. In fact, after stopping Vegas on a fourth-and-3 at the Cowboys’ 47-yard line, starting quarterback Cooper Rush then moved his side close enough to allow Brandon Aubrey to kick a 54-yard field goal for an early 3-0 lead.
The game was soon tied, though. The Raiders started their possession at the 40-yard line after Aubrey’s kickoff went out of bounds. On their first snap, quarterback Gardner Minshew then connected with Tre Tucker on a deep post pattern for a 48-yard gain. The Cowboys defense held its ground, though, as Vegas settled for a 29-yard field goal.
Second Quarter Despite the Raiders starters still being in the game, the Dallas defense forced a three-and-out on Vegas’ first series of the second quarter. But on the ensuing punt, a booming 69-yarder, returner Jalen Cropper fumbled the ball with the home side recovering at the Cowboys’ 23-yard line.
The defense again did its job, though. The Raiders decided to go for it on fourth-and-5 at the Dallas 18, but Minshew’s pass sailed high, the Cowboys taking over on downs.
Lance came in at the start of the second quarter, but his first two series resulted in three-and-outs. And special teams again had its difficulties. This time the Raiders’ Tucker found a lane down the left sideline and was able to return the punt 43 yards. With a 5-yard penalty on Dallas tacked on, Vegas was back in business at the Cowboys’ 28-yard line.
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The Dallas defense again did its job, but this time the Raiders decided to take the easy points, kicking a 27-yard field goal for a 6-3 lead.
However, Lance came back and displayed some of that talent that warranted the Cowboys taking a chance on him. He completed all five of his pass attempts for 34 yards, and ran for a first down on third-and-1 at the Raiders’ 8-yard line. The last of his throws was a perfect 1-yard fade to Ryan Flournoy in the back right corner of the end zone for the Cowboys’ first touchdown of the preseason
But Lance and company weren’t done yet. Getting the ball back at his own 14-yard line with 28 seconds left, the young quarterback threw a pair of 8-yard passes to tight end John Stephens, scrambled for a 2-yard gain, and then took off on a 20-yard scamper before calling a timeout with 1 second left.
That gave Aubrey a chance to try a 66-yard field goal, and his kick went right down the middle to give Dallas a 13-6 advantage at the half.
Third Quarter Unfortunately, the lead was soon cut to one. After the Cowboys were forced to punt on their first possession of the third frame, the Raiders marched 57 yards in 13 plays for the score. The touchdown came on a 5-yard pass from Aidan O’Connell to tight end Harrison Bryant, but when the pair tried to connect again on the two-point conversion, the toss fell incomplete.
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Fourth Quarter The Raiders were on the move when the clock ticked into the final quarter, the home side lined up at the Dallas 35-yard line for the first play of the fourth. But Cowboys cornerback Kemon Hall stepped in front of another O’Connell pass attempt to Bryant and took the interception back 69 yards for a pick-6.
With the Dallas defense continuing to take care of business, Lance’s night just kept getting better. He later took the offense on a 13-play, 88-yard drive that saw him complete passes of 17, 15, 12 and 30 yards, but took the scoring honors himself, dashing up the middle on a quarterback draw from 2 yards out for the touchdown to wrap up the scoring, 27-12.
PHILADELPHIA – It was evident in July and August that Dallas Goedert was going to be a big part of the Eagles’ offense in the red zone. It felt that way most summers, but this time, with first-year offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo in place, the Eagles are dialing up plays for the tight end.
“I think when I get a ball in my hand down there, I’m tough to tackle, I can find my way in, fight my way in,” said Goedert. “It’s just that our red-zone philosophy has changed a bit. We used to run a lot, a lot of quarterback sneaks, things like that down there. We’ve tried to find ways to get me the ball, which is really cool, and I’m gonna keep trying to make them work.”
So far, Goedert has nine touchdown catches. According to NFL Research, five of his touchdowns were thrown behind the line of scrimmage this season, the most by a non-running back in the Next Gen era.
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“He’s such a physical guy,” said Patullo. “His determination to just get yards and have an impact on anything, whether it’s in the pass game, whether it’s gadgets, whatever it may be. He’s really dynamic with the ball in his hands. So anytime you can get the ball in his hands, obviously, that’s what we’re going to try to do.”
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However, the touchdown math didn’t add up for Goedert. He thought eight was the magic number to break the record for most TD catches by a tight end in franchise history, owned by Pete Retzlaff, but Retzlaff had 10 in 1965, meaning Goedert needs one more to break that dusty, 60-year-old mark.
“I thought it was eight, but I was wrong, so I thought I already had it,” he said.
Reminded that he would have had it already had he not dropped a wide-open throw to him in the end zone on Sunday, which would have given him a career-high three in one game, he winced, then answered.
“Yeah, scars right there,” he said. “That one hurts.”
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Dallas Goedert Has Eye On Record
Dec 14, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert (88) walks off the field after win against the Las Vegas Raiders at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
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With three games left, and with his heavy involvement in the red zone, it is reasonable to expect that the record will at least be tied, perhaps even broken.
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“It’s pretty cool,” he said. “Anytime you can break a record, obviously things are going well for you. Obviously, winning is the most important thing and I want to do whatever I can to help win. If they’re giving me the ball down there, I’m gonna try to score. It would be a cool thing to have.”
Goedert’s production in the low red zone is a reason the Eagles lead the NFL in red-zone success, converting close to 70 percent of their trips (25-for-36) inside the 20 into touchdowns. The tight end has nine of those 25 red-zone TDs.
“We’ve had different things for me in the red zone throughout my career here, a lot of them just haven’t got called,” said Goedert. “Once they started calling them, I tried to make sure they worked so they could keep designing and calling other ones. Any time you go in the huddle and hear that play, knowing you have the opportunity to get in the end zone, it gets you kind of excited, for sure.”
Nore NFL: Eagles’ Backup Staying Patient, Takes First-Team Practice Reps
The Dallas Stars start up a brief two-game road trip on Thursday with a game against the San Jose Sharks.
Here’s everything to know about the matchup.
Dallas Stars at San Jose Sharks
When: Thursday, 9 p.m.
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Where: SAP Center, San Jose
TV/Streaming: Victory+
Radio: Sportsradio 96.7/1310 The Ticket
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Bottom line
The San Jose Sharks host the Dallas Stars after Macklin Celebrini scored two goals in the Sharks’ 6-3 win over the Calgary Flames.
San Jose has a 10-5-3 record in home games and a 17-14-3 record overall. The Sharks have a 15-4-2 record when scoring at least three goals.
Dallas is 22-7-5 overall and 11-2-4 on the road. The Stars have a 12-1-2 record in games their opponents commit more penalties.
The teams meet Thursday for the second time this season. The Stars won the previous matchup 4-1.
Top performers
Jason Robertson has 20 goals and 20 assists for the Stars. Wyatt Johnston has scored five goals and added nine assists over the last 10 games.
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Celebrini has 18 goals and 33 assists for the Sharks. Tyler Toffoli has five goals and six assists over the past 10 games.
Last 10 games
Stars: 7-2-1, averaging 3.1 goals, 5.2 assists, 3.7 penalties and 8.9 penalty minutes while giving up two goals per game.
Sharks: 6-4-0, averaging 3.4 goals, 6.1 assists, 3.9 penalties and 7.8 penalty minutes while giving up 3.3 goals per game.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Letters to the Editor — Christianity, Hanukkah, the ’60s, Indiana, Dallas Stars
Readers comment on a column about Christianity; remember being a Vietnam veteran in the ’60s; praise Indiana; and are critical of the Dallas Stars’ probable move to Plano.
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Stars defenseman Vladislav Kolyachonok claimed off waivers by Bruins
The Stars had acquired Kolyachonok in a trade with Pittsburgh for Matt Dumba over the summer.
Dallas Stars learning old hockey adage — good things happen when you put pucks on net
The Stars have not outshot an opponent in their last five games, but started showing signs of improvement Monday against the Kings.
Find more Stars coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett will introduce Dallas hip-hop collective Cure for Paranoia at its upcoming album release show in Deep Ellum, according to frontman Cameron McCloud. The Dallas Observer reported the news first.
“I just said I’d love for her to be at the show if she was in town,” McCloud said in a text message. “She didn’t even have to come up if she didn’t want to and she said ‘Oh no, I’m definitely getting on stage.’”
Crockett, a Dallas Democrat, catapulted into the national spotlight in 2024 after a tense exchange with fellow U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene at a House committee meeting. She has since been regarded as a progressive firebrand, frequently in the headlines for heated back-and-forths with politicians across the aisle.
Crockett also recently launched a bid for the U.S. Senate, promoting her campaign in an Instagram video with McCloud, who wrote a verse about her. He has posted new raps every day this year.
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“Who else willing to go toe to toe against the president?” he recited in Day No. 343’s verse, adding a later nod to Crockett’s viral remarks about Greene: “Texas tough don’t need no more bad built bleach blonde butch bodies moving forward.”
Crockett discovered McCloud through social media.
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“I started listening and thought ‘Man, he’s a genius.’ I was impressed by his ability to sum up what’s going on in under a minute and with accuracy,” she said in a statement. “Especially at a time when people are not listening to traditional news and the easiest thing to do is keep scrolling, Cure captures people’s attention. I was floored to know that not only was he a Texan but a Dallasite.”
Crockett, who has a penchant for alliteration in her speeches, teased a potential performance during her introduction. “I’m known to drop some bars from time to time so you’ll just have to be there and see.”
Cure for Paranoia’s show will be on Dec. 26 at Trees. It will be pegged to the group’s new album, Work of A.R.T., which is slated for release on Dec. 22.
Details
Tickets cost $30.35. 7 to 11 p.m. on Dec. 26. 2709 Elm St., Dallas. For more information, visit treesdallas.com/shows/cure-for-paranoia.
Romeo Santos, Prince Royce headed to Dallas on 2026 tour
They will be performing at American Airlines Center as part of their “Mejor Tarde Que Nunca” (“Better Late Than Never”) tour.
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Texas A&M sophomore Aiden Ross wins ‘The Voice’ season 28
The College Station native is studying industrial engineering at the university.
