Cowboys quarterback Joe Milton (10) looks down field in the first half of an NFL preseason game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Baltimore Ravens at AT&T Stadium in Arlington on Saturday, Aug. 16, 2025, Chris Torres ctorres@star-telegram.com
The Cowboys’ preseason home opener left a lot to be desired Saturday night, as the Baltimore Ravens defeated the Joe Milton-led Dallas squad 31-13.
It was a rough night for Milton and the offense as a whole, as head coach Brian Schottenheimer’s group couldn’t maintain drives throughout the game and was kept out of the end zone. The team’s only touchdown came on a first quarter pick-six from cornerback Andrew Booth Jr.
With position battles heating up and just one preseason game left, here are five takeaways from Saturday’s preseason snoozer at AT&T Stadium:
Cowboys may need a backup backup plan
Simply put, Joe Milton was awful Saturday.
Sure, he had the 49-yard bomb to Jonathan Mingo on the sideline that rightfully caught the attention of everyone in the building. But if the coaching staff is evaluating if he can be ready to hold down the ship if quarterback Dak Prescott goes down at any point in the season, it’s hard to see how there could be any confidence through two preseason games.
Milton finished the night 9-for-18 for 122 yards, one interception and a safety taken in the first quarter.
Is Will Grier the better option? It’s worth asking at this point. Regardless, the Cowboys have to be questioning their decision to move on from Cooper Rush and Trey Lance in the offseason to put Milton in the backup spot.
Linebackers offer lots of optimism
The past two seasons, the linebacker group left a lot to be desired. Going into this season, the offering looks a lot more appetizing.
Free agent addition Jack Sanborn played a handful of drives to start the game and even made an impressive stop in the backfield in the run game. His three tackles helped clean up some mess that was generated on the defensive front.
Next to him, Damone Clark looks like a completely different player in the preseason than he did in 2024 when he was replaced in the starting lineup early in the year and never recovered. He’s stacked good days at camp that has earned praise from Prescott, and his performance Saturday offers optimism that he’s improved in the run game under new defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus. He finished the night with a team-high seven tackles.
Add in encouraging pass defense from Shemar James, a huge training camp from Marist Liufau and excitement from the defensive staff about what Kenneth Murray can bring, and this group should be much improved going into 2025.
And that’s before you even factor in the return of DeMarvion Overshown.
One game will decide the last running back
The lack of offensive reps in the first half — the Cowboys held the ball for just 6 minutes, 15 seconds, in the first two quarters — did not allow for a full evaluation of the first game action for running back Miles Sanders. Pair that with Jaydon Blue having missed both preseason games with an ankle injury, and this team is no closer to figuring out the final couple of running back roster spots than they were weeks ago.
Phil Mafah factors into the discussion as well, but he didn’t see game action Saturday until late in the third quarter.
Reps were hard to come by for the entire offense against the Ravens, and suffering as a result is the coaching staff getting any closer to figuring out who will be next to Javonte Williams as a feature back in the offense.
James Houston needs a spot on the 53-man roster
The Cowboys have shown over the past few years that they love working out free agent pass rushers to throw into the mix during training camp, and James Houston was the benefactor of a roster spot this time around as a body during Micah Parsons’ hold-in.
Four weeks after his signing, it’s safe to say that he’s taken full advantage of his opportunity.
In two preseason games, he has generated a healthy amount of pass rush that has affected opposing offenses. On Saturday, a crucial quarterback hit on a third-down play forced the Ravens’ offense off the field in the first quarter.
It’s tough to see how exactly he makes the roster on a team with so many solid-to-elite pass rushing defensive ends, but Houston has answered the call every time he’s stepped on the field in Oxnard and in the preseason games.
Head-to-head battle coming for slot corner job
The Cowboys’ lone starting job on either side of the ball that is up for grabs, in my opinion, is the slot corner spot.
Israel Mukuamu had a big interception in the preseason opener, and Kemon Hall added an interception of his own Saturday. Despite Mukuamu’s big play last week, he took most of his snaps lined up at safety Saturday, leaving this slot corner battle to come down to Hall and undrafted rookie Zion Childress.
Childress has been smooth in coverage and has made plays in the run game. The starting slot corner in Week 1 will most likely come down to one of those two.