SEATTLE – Hey, hey, ho, ho, these Dallas Cowboys, you know, their second and third teamers are better than yours.
Alas for a change.
Cowboys 17, the defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks 7, in Preseason Game 1 Saturday evening here at Lumen Field.
OK, OK, get it, this in no way is any indication of things to come for the Cowboys in 2026. Neither team played their frontline players. Why when coming to the 90-man roster, the Cowboys sat 29 players, with only four of those missing because of some kind of minor injury. The other 25 were shrink wrapped for health preservation purposes, as has been the Cowboys previous philosophy when coming to these preseason tussles. Hey, Dak hasn't played in any of these in quite some time and will never play in another one the rest of his career.
But think about this just the same. The last time the Cowboys have won Preseason Game 1 occurred in 2017 during the nationally televised Pro Football Hall of Fame induction weekend game. That broke a 7-year, Game 1 losing streak, also won one of those preseason kickoff games in 2013. In fact, and this might be somewhat obscure, but the last time the Cowboys won Preseason Game 1 during a Dallas Cowboys Broadcasting Network telecast came in 2012, Jason Garrett's second year as head coach, walloping the Raiders in Oakland, 3-0, for further perspective.
But hey, as coaches like to say, no matter what you're playing, you want to win, even if its tidily winks. Now this performance for the Cowboys was tackle football, succeeding holding their own this past Tuesday in the scrimmage against the Rams when both teams were playing their starters for a good portion of the workout.
Now in this one, let's remind, qualifying with the Seahawks also not playing their primetime players who won that Super Bowl LX. No DeMarcus Lawrence, Cooper Kupp, Jaxson Smith-Njigba, and for darn sure, no Sam Darnokd either.
Still, the Cowboys offense under the first half direction of quarterback Sam Howell and second half direction of Joe Milton, each led a touchdown drive, the Cowboys backups finishing with 338 yards total offense after gaining just 41 in the first quarter. The Seahawks gaining all of 46 on their game-opening touchdown drive, aided by 34 additional yards of Cowboys penalties, and 156 total.
Also, the Cowboys passed for 201 yards to Seattle's 76. The Cowboys totaled 21 first downs to Seattle's 14, but just eight over the final three quarters. And if you had been watching, Seattle head coach Mike Macdonald was routinely blitzing the Cowboys two quarterbacks involved in a hot competition for the backup job behind Dak Prescott.
So, encouraging if nothing else.
"Overall, I thought the team effort to get the win against a good opponent was really good," head coach Brian Schjottenheimer said. "Things we obviously need to clean up: Penalties. They threw a lot of penalties really on both teams, but that's what the preseason is for. Work on your hand placement, get better. Overall, I was really, really proud of our guys."
That right there, "effort," needs no qualification. Hey, there better be effort. Remember there are 90 guys on this roster, and come Aug. 30, there will only be 53. That means if estimating the 25 healthy guys not participating in this game make the team, then the 61 playing on Saturday are trying fit in as the other 28. Darn sure they had better be effort.
But there was production, too. Thought the third string offensive line played better than the second-teamers, though never easy when mixing and matching up front. Somewhat disappointing was the play of backup offensive tackle Nate Thomas, and sure didn't do himself any favors if he has designs on becoming the Cowboys backup swing tackle. That right there will be worth keeping an eye on rest of this week.
As for the quarterbacks, Howell was first up. He was consistently efficient, finishing with a 118.1 QB rating, thanks in part to that 39-yard touchdown pass to Camden Brown, and if you have been following along these first three weeks, to steal a phrase, there goes that man again, the undrafted rookie free agent out of Georgia Southern.
Milton took over the second half and thought he just might have produced the best half of football he's played for the Cowboys, he too finishing with a 118.6 QB rating and also, lobbing a perfect 2-yard TD pass to Brown, who makes a left-handed grab in the back of the end zone, continuing to make his case for a spot on the 53. And Milton's 23-yard, third-quarter, third-down completion to rookie Anthony Smith might have been his best throw of camp. Why as Milton does not do enough, he hung tough in the pocket with blitz pressure swelling up around him, choosing not to take off running, and firing a perfect strike in stride to Smith, the impetus to his 84-yard touchdown drive.
Call this battle a draw. More to come.
And give the Cowboys defenders some credit for showing some moxie, no more so than facing that Seattle first-and-goal from the 5 following Traeshon Holden suffering an E-6 on an attempted punt return. Four Seattle plays, the final two from the 1, ending up at the Cowboys 15 thanks to Isaiah Land's sack of QB Jalen Milroe on fourth down.
"The defense's job is to keep people out of the end zone," Schotty said. "That's what they're tasked to do. I'm fine winning a game a 7-3, 10-7. I don't care. But I thought they were terrific."
Again, for the first time out for new defensive coordinator Christian Parker, and with these defenders for the most part in a different scheme, thought the defense was gritty and much more assignment sound than what we've seen the past few seasons this time of year.
So, hey, good start, in this backup bowl.
And if you want to be catty, nah-na-nah, my backups were better than yours, though, inconsequential win not even worthy of a kewpie doll.
