FRISCO - The Dallas Cowboys acquired Joe Milton in a trade with the New England Patriots to sure up their backup quarterback position behind Dak Prescott. The addition brings Cowboys fans excitement that Milton's supremely-gifted athleticism can thrive with "America's Team" down the line ... but there is a lot to learn first.
Prescott is a 10-year veteran who has also spent multiple years with former offensive coordinator and now head coach Brian Schottenheimer.
He's pretty familiar with the offense.
Milton is not.
Not only that, Milton is a raw prospect to begin with. He is entering just his second NFL season with flashes of crazy arm talent but is still working on the mental processing required for the position.
This can be tough. Especially as he adjusts to a new city, new teammates, and a full playbook he has to learn front to back.
At OTAs this week, Milton talked about a unique way he and his girlfriend are working on getting comfortable with the Cowboys' offensive schemes.
"I've been through several ways [of learning a playbook]," Milton explained via The Athletic.
"I feel like for me, what one of my quarterback trainers taught me, is use poker chips. Put some letter on poker chips and move those guys around."
He lays poker chips out in a formation (with letters representing various skill positions) and glides them around to simulate a play that his girlfriend called out from the playbook.
"Get a slip of white tape. Make that your line of scrimmage, and move that around because it's easier than drawing and erasing," Milton said.
He reportedly plans to do this every day during the month between the end of minicamp and the start of training camp.
Learning a full offensive playbook as a young player who has previous familiarity with a different scheme is no easy task.
But thanks to a unique nightly ritual with his girlfriend, Milton is doing everything in his power to indoctrinate himself into his new role and be prepared for when his number is called.
Of course, this strategy doesn't completely resemble in-game action or live drills at practice ... but so far at OTAs Milton seems to be doing fine in those, too. See below.