[Dallas Cowboys](https://sportsnaut.com/tag/dallas-cowboys) quarterback Joe Milton put on a passing clinic in the team’s 34-13 preseason victory on Saturday. However, it appears the highly gifted quarterback still finds himself stuck in a battle to be Dak Prescott’s backup.
Speaking to reporters, Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer stated the Cowboys’ quarterback competition for the No. 2 job is “long from over,” and the coaching staff still has a ton of confidence in Sam Howell.
> “This is long from over. We’re going back to Frisco, thankfully, get a chance to be home and put some more training camp days in. You’ve got to give Joe his credit, he’s played really well the past two games, but we have a lot of confidence in Sam as well.”
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> Dallas Cowboys HC Brian Schottenheimer on the QB competition between Joe Milton, Sam Howell (H/T Dallas Cowboys’ [YouTube channel](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0_LzC-irOI))
In 2025, Milton served as the Cowboys’ backup quarterback and appeared in four games. The former Tennessee Volunteers signal-caller completed 15-of-24 pass attempts (62.5 percent completion rate), putting up 183 passing yards (7.6 yards per attempt) with a 1-2 TD-INT line and a 65.1 passer rating.
A sixth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Milton evidently didn’t show enough last year to have the No. 2 job unchallenged. In March, Dallas signed Sam Howell to a one-year contract worth $2.5 million and gave the 2022 fifth-round pick a shot to compete with Milton.
#### Sam Howell vs Joe Milton preseason stats comparison
**QB Rating**
**Completion Rate**
**TD-INT**
**YPA**
**Joe Milton**
142.9
75%
3-0
10.2
**Sam Howell**
85.2
68.2%
1-1
7.2
Howell has played relatively well this summer. However, he threw an interception versus Milton and finished with a passer rating (47.9) that was more than 100 points lower than his competitor’s (151.4). Dallas also technically has more invested into Milton, considering it swapped a fifth-round pick for Milton and a seventh-round pick with the New England Patriots to acquire him.
The most likely scenario is that the Cowboys front office shops Howell around the league, hopeful that keeping him rostered closer to the Aug. 30 cutdown deadline incentivizes a team to trade a 2027 seventh-round pick for him. Given Milton’s performance throughout the preseason and his familiarity with the offense, he remains the favorite to be the Cowboys’ backup quarterback in 2026.