ARLINGTON, Texas – All offseason, the Cowboys' backup quarterback competition has been one of the biggest position battles on Dallas' roster as Joe Milton and Sam Howell work towards being QB2.
After the first two preseason games, Milton seemed to be in the forefront of the competition. On Friday night, Howell reminded the Cowboys of what he was capable of, completing 12 of his 18 passing attempts for 155 yards, two touchdowns, and bringing Dallas back from down 15 in the second half to tie the game before the Saints kicked a late field goal to win 27-24. It's given Dallas something to think about before Sunday, when they trim the roster to 53 players.
"That's one that we may just split the difference and have two backup quarterbacks here is the easy way to do it," Cowboys owner/GM Jerry Jones said of the backup quarterback battle postgame. "I thought both guys out there did some really good things tonight. But keep in mind, quarterback, sometimes it's not the great plays, it's not making the bad plays is the biggest deal of the backup quarterback."
Howell, heading into his fifth year in the league with his fifth different teams, knows the decision is out of his hands.
"I did the best I could," Howell said. "And at the end of the day, no matter what it is, I can sleep at night knowing I did the best I could. That's kind of what I live by. I think that's all you can do in life. Do the best you can each and every day and let them decide what they want to do."
One of the men who is making the roster decisions is Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer, who described the battle between his two backup quarterbacks as "neck and neck."
"They're both great competitors," Schottenheimer said. "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."
It's difficult for both Howell and Milton as well, who have a good relationship off the field but understand the business element of trying to earn a job.
"Joe's been great, man," Howell said. "We've pushed each other. We have a great relationship. At the end of the day, we're part of the same team. Obviously, we both want to win a competition, but at the end of the day, we both want to play at some point. We both want to start in this league. We're both at the same thing, so it's been fun to push each other, and I feel like we've made each other better and that's the main thing. It's never anything personal, and Joe's been great."
Howell's performance on Friday night was just a portion of what he believes was a positive offseason with Dallas after signing a one-year deal with the team in March.
"I feel like I've had a good camp," Howell said. "I feel like I'm playing some good ball right now. I feel confident in the system. And I think us and the guys we're out there with were developing some good chemistry as far as us and the o-line, us and the receivers. So I thought it was a good preseason, and happy the way I performed."
After throwing a 21-yard touchdown pass up the seam to tight end Mitch Van Vooren to bring the Cowboys to within two in the fourth quarter, Howell scrambled through tackles into the end zone to get the two-point conversion and tie the game with 6:11 to play. On his way back to the sidelines, Howell was mobbed by his teammates and the coaching staff.
"We have a cool group of guys here," Howell said of the moment. "The bond here is different than any other place I've been, and I've been around a little bit. It just speaks to the great culture they have here in this building. A lot of people don't care about the preseason, but you can tell by the energy on the sideline that no matter if it's preseason or regular season, we want to win. And that's just the culture that they've built here and I'm just happy to be a part of."
The next 48 hours are some of the most difficult for NFL players as they away the news of whether they've made a team or not. Even if they make a team initially, things can change after players get claimed off waivers or through other transactions.
Through all the uncertainty that comes with this time of year, Howell is certain that everything will work out one way or the other.
"You just got to take it one day at a time and put your best foot forward and you got to do your best," Howell said. "You got to trust that God has a good plan for you no matter where that is, whether that's here or somewhere else. But you got to control what you can control, and that's how you approach every single day and trying to put your best foot forward."
