For the first time in eight years, the Dallas Cowboys opened the preseason with a win, and they did it in convincing fashion. Dallas beat the reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks 17-7 at Lumen Field, erasing an early touchdown by running off 17 unanswered points.
The Cowboys did it without most of their biggest names. Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, Quinnen Williams, George Pickens, Tyler Smith and plenty of other starters were held out, which turned the night into a proving ground for depth players and roster hopefuls trying to force their way onto the 53-man team. The good news for Dallas: the team came out of Seattle healthy.
There were still plenty of storylines packed into the night, starting with the much-anticipated Cowboys debut of Caleb Downs. That one didn’t last long.
Dallas wanted the No. 11 overall pick to get a feel for things, and his night was over before Seattle finished its opening drive. Shavon Revel and P.J.
Locke came out at the same time, and Revel nearly made the first snap of the game count with a pick-six. He had been having a superb training camp, and that play showed why.
Not every young Cowboy had such a smooth night. Nate Thomas struggled badly, beginning with a false start on third-and-4 that stalled Dallas’ first drive.
He also should have been flagged again on the next possession. Losing the left tackle battle to former first-round pick Tyler Guyton is one thing, but this performance may have raised a bigger question about whether the Cowboys need to upgrade the spot before the regular season.
Jonathan Mingo, on the other hand, looked like a player who belongs. The 25-year-old, who has been having a strong camp, came through with two tough third-down catches in tight coverage.
With the passing game not exactly humming, he gave Sam Howell a dependable target. Based on this showing, he looks like the WR5 in this offense.
Caelen Carson had a night he’d probably rather forget. Before halftime, he had already been hit with three penalties.
One of the calls was questionable, but the final tally still reads the same: a DPI, a facemask and defensive holding in one half against backups. That’s a rough line for a third-year player.
One of the biggest bright spots came from Camden Brown. The UDFA made a statement with a 39-yard touchdown in the second quarter, hauling in an incredible contested catch in the end zone with a Seahawks defender draped all over him.
He wasn’t done there, either. In the third quarter, Brown came down with another ridiculous one-handed grab in the end zone and made a strong case that Dallas shouldn’t risk losing him to waivers when roster cuts come.
Michael Trigg also kept himself in the conversation. Another UDFA, he helped spark that scoring drive with two catches in traffic.
The second one stood out most, as he showed strong hands on a throw from Sam Howell near the sideline. Trigg finished with four catches for 30 yards, and the only knock on him is the number on his back: No.
At quarterback, both Sam Howell and Joe Milton had productive nights, but Milton may have pulled ahead in the battle for the backup job. He looked calmer and more accurate than he did last preseason, and the offense had a noticeably better rhythm with him running it. The Cowboys should feel good about both quarterbacks, but Milton is the one with the edge right now.
The running back situation also took an interesting turn. What looked like it might be the Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah game turned into the Malik Davis show.
He didn’t get on the field until the third quarter, then wasted no time flashing. Davis finished with 7 carries for 39 yards, leading Dallas in rushing and looking like maybe the second-best back on the roster.
Defensively, Christian Parker’s debut had a clear arc. Seattle opened with a touchdown drive, but after that the Cowboys locked in.
Dallas forced multiple red zone stops and didn’t allow another point the rest of the way. For a first outing, that’s exactly the kind of response you want.
Special teams, though, brought back some familiar concerns. Nick Sorensen’s unit gave up a couple of big returns, including a 52-yard punt return.
Dallas was also called for illegal formation on the play, handing Seattle extra yards. Return coverage was a problem for most of 2025, and Saturday didn’t exactly calm those fears.
The biggest cleanup item was impossible to miss: penalties. Dallas was flagged 13 times for 103 yards, and too many of those came from the offensive line. For a preseason game that otherwise had a lot to like, that’s the kind of sloppiness the Cowboys will need to fix fast.
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