OXNARD, Calif. — Brian Schottenheimer didn’t name a starting quarterback for the Cowboys’ preseason opener against the Rams on Saturday, but everything is looking good for Joe Milton.
The last time Milton played a game was the 2024 regular season finale when he relieved Drake Maye for New England, leading to a victory over the Bills. That victory cost the Patriots the No. 1 pick, but in a personal way it was good for Milton to show what he can actually do in a game given the chance.
And after the Cowboys worked an offseason trade for Milton, they’ve seen a strong arm, the ability to move in the pocket and, well, he’s young, 25, and ready to backup Dak Prescott.
“I mean when he first got here it was early offseason, went through a throwing deal, just watched the arm talent and so from there, it was just about really just picking up the offense and just as naturally as anybody in a new system is gonna take some time and that was in the OTAs,” Prescott said. “But then he came back and obviously picked it up fast and the OTAs, came back and you could tell in the time off, how much time he put into it. As we got back in training camp, just continuing to grow and showing how much he’s taken in the offense and how comfortable he’s gotten with it.”
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In training camp practices, Milton has received the majority of the snaps with the second-team offense for the exception of the joint scrimmage with the Rams in which he hurt the thumb on his throwing hand while following through on a pass attempt.
Milton said he’s fine and has established himself as the clear No. 2 behind Prescott. One of the biggest adjustments for Milton is getting rid of the ball quicker. In that last game for the Patriots, Milton took 3.63 seconds to throw the ball. That’s way too long, however, the type of play-call and whether the receivers are open adds more context.
With the Cowboys, Schottenheimer is asking Milton to find the running back or tight end, what’s called the checkdown, more often. Milton also is fast, so the ability to jump out the pocket is another option.
“Yeah, this is pretty much, he wants me to have a time clock in my head,” Milton said of Schottenheimer. “That pretty much goes for every quarterback. Every young quarterback that haven’t had as many reps as I have. Pretty much having a time clock, not being back there, just trying to sit back there and wait. Just trying to be able to play every practice, every rep in practice like in a game, that’s pretty much it.”
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Milton doesn’t mind holding the ball often because of his strong arm. Milton called his arm a rocket and he’s proved that in training camp practices. He connected with receiver Jalen Brooks on a long touchdown pass in the joint scrimmage.
“I know I can make it, so yes, I do trust my arm a lot,” he said.
Prescott said he can’t think of another player who has a stronger arm than Milton. Schottenheimer noted Brett Favre as someone who had a powerful arm. In college, Milton said he could throw a ball 70 yards in a game, 80 yards in a practice.
Over the past few sessions, Milton has improved in getting rid of the ball quicker, whether it’s dumping it off to a running back in the flat or using his legs to move the ball down the field. The Cowboys can also use run-pass options with Milton because of his speed.
Cooper Rush was the backup quarterback to Prescott for several years, even winning four of five games in 2022.
But Rush signed with Baltimore in the offseason and the Cowboys also allowed Trey Lance to become a free agent. So they brought back Will Grier and once the opportunity was presented to get Milton, the franchise jumped.
And with Milton here, the training camp practices and the three preseason games are vital in his development.
“I think we have faith in Joe already, that’s the first thing I would say,” Schottenheimer said. “It’s incredibly important. You’re talking about a guy who hasn’t played a whole lot of football, not just in the National Football League and college. Some of these guys coming out of college, they got five, six years worth of starts. Every rep that Joe gets is critical. So he’ll play a ton of football.
“He’s going to do some great things and make some mistakes. That’s part of preseason football. I’ll make some mistakes being a first-time head coach. That’s why we do preseasons. The reps are important for him because every chance he gets to stand back there and drive the car, which is moving the offense, he’ learning and he’s learning on the run.”
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