The 2025 NFL season hasn’t even begun, but Trey Lance may have already bagged his first win. For those out of the loop, the former Cowboys quarterback is headed to Los Angeles, inking a one-year deal with the Chargers. However, it’s the numbers behind the contract that are the real talking point.
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On paper, a deal worth up to $6.2 million for a year-long tenure isn’t outlandish money for a QB in today’s market. But when you break down the contract, the realization hits: it’s incredibly lucrative for someone mostly expected to hold a clipboard and soak up the L.A. sun.
Trey Lance’s Chargers Contract Breakdown
Per second: $0.38
Per minute: $22.83
Per hour: $1,369
Per day: $32,876
Per week: $230,769
Per month: $1,000,000
Yes, that’s right, Lance is about to be paid over thirty grand a day, to be third-string behind Justin Herbert (and possibly Taylor Heinicke).
Unsurprisingly, NFL fans couldn’t control themselves from labelling this payday their definition of success, and rightly so. As things stand, Lance has landed a job most players can only dream of: minimal pressure, backup reps, Hollywood backdrop, and enough cash to make even some starters jealous.
“This is what success looks like,” noted one. “Yeah, that’s what I need,” chimed in another.
Others, meanwhile, highlighted how being a backup QB is one of the best gigs for an athlete in sports today. “Being a backup QB is almost free money,” they said.
Before Lance, a few noted that it was Chase Daniel who set the blueprint for backup playmakers by amassing career earnings of $41.8 million in his 14-year stint. He started just 5 games in 13 years. “Chase Daniel walked, so Trey Lance could run,” joked a fan.
Chase Daniel’s walked so Trey could run
— Big O (Stinsons Shooting Supply) (@therealOStinson) April 6, 2025
While it’s easy to joke about Lance getting paid for next to no work, let’s also not forget that the QB’s road to L.A. has been anything but smooth.
Drafted No. 3 overall by the 49ers, San Francisco gave up a king’s ransom to get him—three first-round picks—while expecting a franchise cornerstone in return. Instead, injuries, depth chart shuffles, and the rise of Brock Purdy derailed those plans. After San Francisco, Trey Lance landed in Dallas with some buzz, with whispers that he might be Dak Prescott’s eventual successor.
But by 2024, he was buried behind Cooper Rush, with the QB only seeing the field after a series of injuries forced the Cowboys’ hand. Unfortunately for Lance, even his limited action didn’t exactly scream “QB1” with 266 passing yards, 1 INT, and no touchdowns to show for.
Now, with his new home in LA, Chargers fans will be hoping for Lance to live up to his draft potential, considering Justin Herbert has had multiple injuries over the last two seasons.
So, in HC Harbaugh’s eyes, Lance is an insurance policy for his talisman. And in this situation, who better than a still-young, physically gifted former top pick with something to prove?
