Brian Schottenheimer still doesn’t have a clean answer behind Dak Prescott, and training camp hasn’t made the Cowboys’ QB2 decision any simpler.
That’s been the story all summer in Dallas: plenty of competition, not much separation. The Cowboys have battles going on all over the roster, but this one has stayed stubbornly close.
Tyler Guyton is all but locked in as the starting left tackle, and the CB2 fight between Shavon Revel Jr. and Cobie Durant is still open. Even so, the backup quarterback race has become the one Schottenheimer can’t seem to solve.
Dallas has been running open auditions between Joe Milton and Sam Howell, and neither has grabbed hold of the job. In Tuesday’s joint practice with the Los Angeles Rams, Milton threw an interception.
Howell also put one in danger, though the defender dropped what would have been a pick. That’s been the pattern all summer: one step forward, one miscue right behind it.
The uncertainty has shown up everywhere, not just in joint practices. Some reports have pointed to Howell as the frontrunner.
Others have said he’s spent more time as the third-stringer, with Milton trending toward QB2. The Cowboys’ first unofficial depth chart of the offseason didn’t clear anything up either, listing Joe Milton “OR” Sam Howell as the backup behind Prescott.
That kind of tie is about as close as it gets.
There are reasons to see both sides. Howell has been the more turnover-prone quarterback, but Dallas still handed him $2 million in guaranteed money with the expectation that he’d compete for the job. Milton, meanwhile, arrived as a 2024 sixth-round pick, after the Cowboys gave up a fourth-round pick for him last summer, and his biggest selling point is still that rocket arm.
For now, Schottenheimer will have to let the preseason be the deciding test. Training camp hasn’t separated Milton and Howell, and the Cowboys still need to figure out which one will back up Prescott in 2026.
Both quarterbacks have a case. Neither one has made it easy.
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