GLENDALE, Ariz. – The Cowboys left for the West Coast back in late July looking for answers. After four weeks of practices that included two heated scrimmages and two preseason games, the Cowboys have found a few.
After Saturday night in Arizona, you can check any questions at two more positions off the list – at least in this opinion. The Cowboys have never asked me for my thoughts on the depth chart, but if they did, I'm ending any kind of debate for a pair of backup spots.
Joe Milton is still your backup quarterback. And with that, Malik Davis is your RB2 as well.
Again, I don't make the call, of course, and the coaches and scouts might see it differently, but to me Joe Milton gives you a better dynamic than Sam Howell. And we really haven't seen what Milton does best, and that's run the ball. He really hasn't had to yet during this preseason, but you know he can. Add that to the absolute-perfect dime he dropped to Jonathan Mingo for the touchdown, and now you're looking at a quarterback who can not only step in for your starter if needed, but also provide a unique dimension that should give defenses problems.
And that's what you want in all backup positions. The same goes for Davis at running back. I mean, they've been trying to unseat him for 12 months now. What about Jaydon Blue? What about Phil Mafah? Even Israel Abanikanda has been linked to this position. But through it all, it's Malik Davis who continues to outshine the rest.
Sure, Blue is the fastest of the group, Mafah is the biggest and Abanikanda has the most experience. But the combination of all of them is Davis, who always seems to rise to the challenge.
If you go back to the first drive of the game, the Cowboys were moving the ball right down the field. And who was doing the damage? That would be Milton and Davis, making play after play. Then, they get down inside the red zone, and Blue comes in for Davis, trips over his feet and doesn't gain the yard needed on third-and-short. So on fourth down, after already converting one quarterback sneak on the drive, Milton this time puts the ball in the air and throws it to tight end Zack Kuntz, who dropped the ball for a turnover on downs.
I even posted on social media something like "these 2 guys got you down the field so why take the ball out of their hands?" But after an interception by Shavon Revel, the offense got it back, and guess what, Milton and Davis kept the ball. The quarterback made a great throw on the run to Davis, who did the rest for a touchdown that seemed to ice any talk about a running back battle for the backup.
Then, Milton put the QB2 debate to bed with two more touchdown drives, highlighted by his two best throws of camp. One might say the deep-ball dime to Mingo was his best, but I'll take the throw to Camden Brown as his best of the night, overall camp and preseason, and who knows, maybe his career. What I loved the most about it was that Milton is mostly known for two things: having a rocket-launcher for an arm and being able to take off and run. And on this play, protection broke down, and Milton had the chance to run, but he didn't. He could've fired the ball to a streaking Brown, but he didn't. Instead, Milton was rolling left and threw a perfect touch pass to Brown, who did the rest, taking it all the way to the 1-yard line.
Fittingly, it was Milton who punched it in with a 1-yard touchdown run, giving him three for the night. But the real number is two, as in No. 2. That's where Milton is going to be, and that was my stance long before Howell got in the game and threw an interception in the end zone. I don't know if Howell makes the team or not, but I do think Milton has done enough to not only take the backup job, but he might have played well enough that the Cowboys only keep two quarterbacks on the active roster.
Here are some other things that stood out to me from this one:
- Loved what I saw from Jaishawn Barham. That dude looks like a baller. And we finally got to see him in pads, and he played like one. Can't wait to watch him develop over time because he has the tools to be a really good one.
- Mingo has done everything possible to make this team. He's been a possession receiver, he's been a deep-threat and he's been a special teams standout. Now, he's probably the fifth or sixth receiver for Dallas, and who knows, there could be teams where he'd be much higher than that on the depth chart. Not saying the Cowboys trade him, but he's done enough where other teams have likely noticed, too.
- Happy for Revel. Not sure he did much but catch the ball, but at least he stayed on his feet when his receiver did not. He's had a great camp, and it's good that he got to wrap it up with a pick.
One last thing before we head back to Dallas: I've seen my share of preseason games right before the return trip home. Usually, it's the second preseason game like this one, and after a month of being gone, the mindset is typically one that is focused on getting back to Texas and not always about the game itself.
So it was very refreshing to see the Cowboys come into this game, knowing that their suitcases are already headed on a truck to Dallas, and take care of business like they did with an impressive showing. I know it's just the backups mostly, but the mindset was a good one. We continue to talk about why this season "feels different," and the way they played in this game is just another example of that.
OK, let's go home.
