Don’t be shocked if Sam Howell wins the QB2 role

Look, we are right in the area of waiting for the training camp to get here to give us some more interesting things to talk about.

Let me be the first to say I like it this way because that means Jerry Jones has given us no drama to worry about, and this is a great thing. This team has been strictly football this offseason and it feels like a first for everything.

With that said, I have been keeping my eyes on some things that I think are important and one that it probably not getting enough attention because nobody probably cares is the fact that Sam Howell very well could take the QB2 role this season, and Joe Milton will be out the door.

Joe Milton III and Sam Howell split reps with the second-team unit today as they duke it out for the QB2 job.

Milton: "In the league, you gotta compete every day. No matter where I end up or where he ends up, you gotta compete. Nothing is just given to you."

Howell: "To me, it… pic.twitter.com/cJKSuqKdwD

— Nick Harris (@NickHarrisFWST) June 9, 2026

Wouldn’t Be Shocked

The Cowboys have tried and tried to establish a backup and its like most in the league, they just go through them like a revolving door, and that is not a bad thing, but can be annoying.

Everyone thought Trey Lance was the next big thing, that is why he has been traded and cut twice. Then it was Joe Milton is the man! Well, outside his big arm, he does not do much else well, and we know this.

Now, Sam Howell is in the building and I think he is going to beat him out and take the backup job and Milton will be cut before the season starts.

Milton didn’t do much in 2025. He attempted only 24 passes, 13 of which came in the season finale. But there’s a lot a backup quarterback has to do week in and week out at the NFL level, so he had to be on the list. Here’s the thing: I don’t believe Howell winning this competition would be a shocker.

Neither one of these guys are dudes that teams think can be a starter, Washington did with Howell in 2023, and he went 4-13 with 21 touchdowns and 21 interceptions.

For those folks who say that they should have kept Cooper Rush, zero point for an argument about that.

After Lamar Jackson suffered a hamstring injury in Week 4 in 2025, Rush was named starter with them after he signed a 6 million dollar deal with them.

His first start as a Raven, he threw three interceptions with no touchdowns in a 10-44 loss at home. In Week 6, Rush was benched for Tyler Huntley in their 17-3 home loss to the LA Rams. So, let’s just get that out of the way now.

It is tough to win in this league, but having a backup guy that can win a couple of games is important. It can make or break your season. We saw that when Bo Nix got hurt.

Brian Schottenheimer said the No. 2 qb reps will be split evenly between Joe Milton and Sam Howell. Last week Milton took the No. 2 reps, this week will be Howell. “It’s going to be a fun competition,” Schottenheimer said.

— Todd Archer (@toddarcher) June 9, 2026

In the AFC title game last season. Jarrett Stidham needed 11 points to send the Broncos to the Super Bowl. He scored 7, and the Broncos’ defense held the Pats to 10 points.

Stidham only completed 17 passes for 133 yards. One touchdown and one interception, so again, this stuff can be important in case you forgot.

The point of this is that, in terms of what the Cowboys are working with right now, I would rather have a guy who has started an entire year in the NFL than a guy who has been with two teams and hasn’t done much of anything.

This might be way off and this training camp will either help him or hurt him, but neither one of them have a handle of the backup job, and let’s just hope that neither of them need to play this season, because then that would mean Dak stayed on the field and did not have any injuries.