Joe Milton III proved exactly why he was traded into a situation to be a backup and not a starter. In his lone NFL appearance last year in the final game of the season, he flexed his arm strength and mobility with the New England Patriots and started to garner a lot of attention from quarterback-needy teams. Jerry Jones was the only one to take the trade bait and now we see why.
Milton didn’t look anything like he did in that game against Buffalo last year and it’s proof that, one, Jones took a big swing on Milton and two, he’s not ready to be a starter in the NFL. Milton missed several receivers in the Dallas Cowboys' game Saturday and took unnecessary risks throughout. Fortunately for him, he’s in a one-horse race for Dak Prescott’s backup job. He’ll have the next two games to get the necessary reps, but he’s far from replacing Prescott.
Jones took another shot in the dark for a young quarterback with upside and this one looks worse than when he acquired Trey Lance.
The Joe Milton III hype has officially died down, but he’s far from a lost cause
Milton had a lot of hype around him that has since died down, certainly after Saturday’s preseason game. But the good thing is, he’s not a lost cause. The Cowboys still have something to work with. He’s no Cooper Rush and hopefully Dallas doesn’t need him to be Rush. But he’s a player that with some time, could eventually become a reliable quarterback.
Preseason games don’t tell the full story. Though it’s better to play well in them than to struggle, the one thing the Cowboys learned is they have no reason to rush Milton into Prescott’s role. When the Cowboys traded for Milton, Prescott said he didn’t feel any added pressure and now we see why. The good thing too is because he doesn’t have that pressure, maybe he’s willing to work with Milton more and help him develop.
Cowboys don't need Joe Milton to be Dak Prescott
Prescott will be playing in his age 32 season this year. His days are numbered as the starting quarterback for the Cowboys. So Jones preemptively getting Milton could be a long term play that works out. Though, with Jones, things seldom make sense. So for all we know, Milton was a swing and a miss and won’t have a future in Dallas.
Saturday didn’t help Milton’s argument, but it didn’t necessarily hurt it either. He is very much good enough to be a future starter in the NFL. But time, patience and reps are the most important things for his development right now. He’ll get at least two more games with the Cowboys in the preseason to grow.
If he plays much better than he did on Saturday, he could prove he’s not that bad after all. If he continues to struggle though, then the real questions will rise as people will question if he truly is as good as we thought he was in his NFL debut.