Brian Schottenheimer has preached competition during this training camp and unlike other regimes in Dallas, he appears to be following through.
The Dallas Cowboys' head coach made several depth chart changes this week after Week 1 of the preseason, including giving Malik Davis more opportunities to prove that he can be RB2 behind Javonte Williams.
Another player who has benefited from a strong preseason performance is Joe Milton, who played some of the best football of his career last Saturday.
The expectation is that he’ll get a chance to start against the Cardinals this week, and with another strong performance, he could end the backup quarterback battle.
Joe Milton can win the Cowboys' QB2 job vs. Cardinals
The Cowboys signed Sam Howell this offseason with the idea that he would challenge Milton to be the second quarterback on the roster. And to his credit, Howell played very well on Saturday despite playing behind a very shaky offensive line.
There was nothing he did to lower his stock and he is still in this competition. However, it was Milton who was the more impressive quarterback in the first contest of the year.
Milton has some of the best tools in the league, but the thing holding him back is his lack of consistency. During the 2025 preseason, it was hard to even evaluate the wide receivers and tight ends.
That was an issue during the practices, as well, but the Cowboys didn’t really have another choice but to lean on Milton to be the backup.
The good news is that Milton is having a much “quieter” training camp and preseason this year. He is making the routine throws look… routine. There were no big misses on Saturday night, and his footwork was dramatically improved.
It’s also very clear that he is more comfortable in the offense, and the game is starting to slow down for him.
The Cowboys are finally seeing growth from Joe Milton
You can make a case that Milton's performance against the Seahawks is the best we've ever seen him play with the Cowboys. While he didn't make any big-time throws (according to PFF), he did complete 12 of 15 passes despite his WRs dropping three passes. He took what the defense gave him, and it resulted in rock-solid quarterback play for Dallas.
Does that mean he’s ready to be a starting quarterback in the NFL? No, probably not. There are still times during the practices where his accuracy comes and goes, but it’s nowhere near as frequent as it was last season.
With another strong preseason performance on Saturday, Milton should be able to end the backup quarterback job. But he’s not going to do it via long bombs and big runs. The only way Milton can lock up the backup quarterback job is if he continues to show that down-to-down consistency and command of the offense.
This is a huge opportunity for Milton to show that he is developing and is ready to become one of the NFL’s top backup quarterbacks. Keep an eye on his performance on Saturday night, as a strong showing should end this competition.
If Milton can start to put everything together, who knows exactly what the ceiling might be for him in Dallas.
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