Inside Cowboys OTAs Roster Battle: QB Joe Milton vs. Sam Howell As Dak Prescott Backup

As Dallas Cowboys OTAs begin, we are getting ready for a lot of roster battles as Brian Schottenheimer enters his second year in the big silver and blue chair.

Defense has taken the limelight this offseason, but on offense, there is a roster battle that I will be keeping a close eye on.

And that’s at quarterback.

No, it’s not Dak Prescott. It’s what’s happening behind him.

Joe Milton landed in Dallas last offseason after the Cowboys executed a trade with the New England Patriots, and while we saw Joe in preseason be rough around the edges, he did show some signs of progress.

Then, in Week 18 against the New York Giants, Joe got a half and again looked like a raw prospect, going 7-for-13 for 73 yards and an interception, while also rushing for 43 yards on four carries.

So, entering his second offseason, Milton might have been thinking the backup role was his, but then Dallas threw a stick of dynamite into the water.

It signed Sam Howell.

A quarterback with 18 career starts (5-13), and for a minute in Washington, the franchise thought he was its “guy” long-term. It hasn’t panned out that way, but now we enter OTAs, and there’s a serious battle set to commence.

Yes, we know Milton’s athletic ability, but in the NFL, that only gets you so far, and one of Joe’s biggest bugaboos last season was that when a simple five-yard pass was there for the taking, he would rocket the ball, and it would bounce off the receiver’s hands and be incomplete.

For the Cowboys, they likely need to see him “play” the quarterback position far better. Setting protections, dictating to the offense, going through his progressions, and taking what the defense gives him.

And that is Howell’s wheelhouse, which is why Milton has to be nervous, and why OTAs are crucial for Joe to show his progression in that aspect of his game.

No, Howell doesn’t have the physical gifts of Milton, but he has skins on the wall as a starter, and you could make the case that he plays the position better than Joe right now.

So, it could become a matter of what Dallas wants in a backup for Dak.

A player like Milton, who shows plenty of promise, but you aren’t entirely confident he can step in for a couple of games and keep the ship afloat?

Or someone like Howell, who has starting experience and can play the role of “bus driver” for Schottenheimer’s offense?

We will get that answer in training camp as Milton and Howell go toe-to-toe in a position battle that pits incredible physical gifts against football IQ.

Who will emerge victorious?

CowboysRoundtable.com will be inside The Star this week to watch the roster-spot battle unfold.

Tags: