There were plenty of NFL rumors that the Dallas Cowboys could cut ties with one of their quarterbacks behind Dak Prescott. Joe Milton and Sam Howell have been competing to be the Cowboys QB2.
While the Cowboys have yet to announce who won the backup job, both Milton and Howell made the final 53-man roster. ESPN’s Todd Archer reported that so far Dallas has resisted offers to trade one of the signal-callers.
“Cowboys keep three QBs – Dak Prescott, Joe Milton, Sam Howell,” Archer detailed in an August 30, 2026, message on X. “They received some calls from teams for their backups, but a deal never came about.
“Both deserved a spot on the 53. Now we’ll see who is No. 2.”
Here’s what you need to know about the latest Cowboys news.
Cowboys Rumors: Joe Milton Projected to be Named Dallas’ Backup QB Over Sam Howell
The Cowboys are expected to name a backup quarterback sooner rather than later. Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Nick Harris projects Milton has won the backup gig over Howell.
The Athletic’s Jon Machota also predicts Milton will be ahead of Howell on the Cowboys depth chart.
“Before Friday night’s preseason finale, it was only Prescott and Milton,” Machota wrote in an August 29, story titled, “Cowboys 53-man roster projection: Will they keep 3 QBs? Which spots still need help?” “Howell did enough to make me think the Cowboys will now go with three.
“(Brian) Schottenheimer said the backup job is ‘neck and neck.’ Jones said, ‘That’s one where we may just split the difference and have two backup quarterbacks,'” Machota added.
“Milton has had the better overall training camp and first two preseason games, but Howell has more experience and was the better player Friday night.”
Cowboys News: Dallas Opted Not to Trade or Cut Sam Howell & Joe Milton
Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer appears confident in both Howell and Milton. The Cowboys traded for Howell this offseason, and it will be interesting to see if Milton can hold off the veteran for the QB2 role.
“They’re both great competitors,” Schottenheimer said of Howell and Milton, per DallasCowboys.com’s Tommy Yarrish. “What I love about them both is both guys want to win the spot. Both guys want to compete, but both guys are really happy for each other when they do well.
“That was last week, Sam cheering on Joe, Joe cheering on Sam in this game. That’s the tough part of this weekend because I am really proud of this team and how much we’ve accomplished over the past seven, eight weeks. And the human element of this is hard.”
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