The Dallas Cowboys don’t have a lot of great options at backup quarterback in 2026, where right now it looks like a battle between NFL also-rans Joe Milton III and Sam Howell.
There’s another option, presented by ESPN’s Ben Solak, that would involve the Cowboys taking a polarizing prospect in 6-foot-5, 233-pound University of Miami quarterback Carson Beck.
Solak predicts the Cowboys will take Beck in the 5th round (No. 152 overall) after he threw for 3,813 yards, 30 touchdowns, 30 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions to go with 2 rushing touchdowns in his 1 season with the Hurricanes.
Beck also did what seemed unthinkable before the year, leading an NIL-stacked roster to a runner-up finish in the College Football Playoff, where they lost to Indiana in the national championship game.
“Dallas doesn’t need to add a third body to that (quarterback) battle,” Solak wrote. “But with three picks in the fifth round and an otherwise deep roster, why wouldn’t the Cowboys take a chance on a QB should one fall into their lap? Beck was considered a potential Day 1 riser over the course of his college career, but his time in the College Football Playoff with both Georgia and Miami has made his limitations clear. His accuracy and his arm talent are both only average, so he needs to be an impeccable decision-maker in order to thrive. But coverage rotations and pressure both bait him into poor choices, and it’s unlikely those habits will go away in the NFL for a player with so much experience already.”
Better Option at QB2 Than Milton or Howell
It’s hard not to see how Beck wouldn’t be a hands-down, Day 1 upgrade over both Milton and Howell, and also to remember a lesson history taught us a decade ago.
In case you forgot, Prescott, the highest-paid player in NFL history, was a 4th-round pick (No. 135 overall) out of Mississippi State in the 2016 NFL draft and was brought in to be a backup to then-starter Tony Romo.
That’s not saying Beck could wind up being the starter for the Cowboys by any means, but Prescott has a history of getting hurt — and getting hurt bad.
We know what we’re going to get with Milton and Howell — bad to mid football — with Beck at least there’s some upside.
Why Carson Beck is Such a Polarizing Prospect
In the NIL era, few players have gotten to cash in like Beck did during 5 seasons at Georgia, in which he won 2 national championships as the backup to Stetson Bennett, then spent 2 seasons as the starter for the Bulldogs followed by his 1 year at Miami.
By some reports, Beck was paid upwards of $4 million for coming to play a final season for the Hurricanes and made over $10 million during the entirety of his college football career.
Long story short: People liked to hate on Beck because he made a lot of cash. Jealousy is a powerful thing.
“When Carson Beck transferred from Georgia to Miami, he solidified his status as one of the highest-paid players in college football,” Yahoo Sports reporter Jake Mozarsky wrote in January 2026. “Lured by an NIL package from the Canes Connection collective reportedly worth between $4 million and $6 million, Beck’s move to Coral Gables was an expensive one, outearning nearly two dozen active NFL quarterbacks before even taking his first snap in a Hurricanes uniform.”
Cowboys Predicted to Draft Polarizing 6-foot-5, 233-Pound QB