OXNARD, Calif. – As he heads into his second year in the NFL, Joe Milton has been getting acclimated to Dallas and playing for the Cowboys. Following a rookie season with the Patriots where he served as the backup to number three overall pick Drake Maye, learning Brian Schottenheimer's offense has been a welcome change of pace.
"At the Patriots, it was more everybody telling everybody what they're doing based off the play, how long the play call was, the play call's longer," Milton said. "Over here, it pretty much goes back to my high school and college days, one word is a whole concept. I think learning the offense early like that, and coming in new to an offense, it's pretty good to have that type of system."
The trade to the Cowboys from New England in exchange for a 2025 fifth-round pick was one that didn't blindside Milton at all. In fact, he wanted it to happen.
"Definitely, I preferred it," Milton said when asked if he wanted a fresh start. "That was something me and my team put together. They were able to get it done, I really didn't have to do much or say much. So just shout out to my agent, that's pretty much it."
With only one NFL training camp under his belt, Milton knows that he has a lot to learn. Thankfully, Schottenheimer and Cowboys QB coach Steve Shimko have made a point to communicate with Milton as much as possible and get him acclimated to their scheme.
"They put in a lot of time with me, and also obviously the offense, but from those two man, they give great insights, great point of views," Milton said. "As far as what I've learned, I learned a lot since I've been here because of new terminology. There's a lot of new terminology for me, I feel like it's just when you learn a new video game, you have to learn the controls to it."
"I feel like that's what it is here, you know, just learning the offense, learning the system, learning what all I can do and what I'm capable of doing inside the offense."
There's a lot that Milton is capable of, from the ability to launch passes 60+ yards down the field with ease to using his legs to turn up field and make plays. That ability will all be on display in the preseason at the earliest, but Milton's not too focused on that just yet.
"Still too far ahead, I'll be where my feet are at, I like being present in the moment," Milton said when asked if he was thinking about his preseason opportunities. "Just because if you get too far ahead, things start slipping from underneath you, you start forgetting small details in your day-to-day life."
If anything, he wants to show he can be better than what he was for the Cowboys in OTAs, which he graded himself on.
"I feel like I've done well with understanding the play caller's purpose and just executing, finding completions here and there, and just trying to take the shots, trying to open up the offense some more." Milton said.
"OTAs went well for me, I feel like I would give myself a C in OTAs, so I feel like I just needed to improve from that for sure."
So for now, Milton wants to get his grade up by homing in on the little details and being prepared for every situation he'll be placed in, whether it be on the field or in the meeting room.
"Getting better day by day, and that's just putting one foot in front of the other, but also something that I was kind of like going by my first offseason was one percent, just getting one percent better," Milton said. "Upping the score, doing whatever I have to do to get ready for the next day, but also be ready for night meetings, come back with questions, be ready in the morning."
And to do that, he's gotten some help from Dak Prescott, who Milton appreciates going above and beyond to make sure that he's understanding all the information that's coming his way at this point in his career.
"Dak is a great leader… All respect to him. He literally goes out of his way to help me, no matter if the coach is talking in the meeting, he literally goes out of his way to help…"
"I've been in another building. I know how that goes. It's just very different over here."
The respect is mutual, as Prescott has been seen several times during practice stopping plays before they start to make sure Milton has the offense in order, or even after plays talking to him about what he's seen. Cleary, Prescott appreciates having Milton in the quarterback room backing him up.
"Joe is a blast, whether it be in meetings, whether it be on the field, you see the energy on the field, whether I'm making a play, Will [Grier] is making play or he's in, posing on the sidelines or doing dances after he runs out of bounds or scores a touchdown." Prescott said.
"That's contagious, that's very contagious. And Joe's a guy that's going to push me to be better and each and every day, and we encourage that in the room, that's the competition, that's part of it."
Prescott added later on that Milton is quick to seek out his advice as much as any other coaches on the staff, something that he's happy to do given how much he already respects Milton and his game. In just a few months, they'll take the field together as teammates with the hopes of continuing to push one another and make each other better.
