If at first you don’t succeed, trade and trade again.
The Cowboys’ 2023 deal for Trey Lance as a developmental quarterback didn’t work out as they wasted a fourth-round pick on a quarterback who played 98 snaps in two seasons.
They are trying again with `former Patriots draft pick Joe Milton, for whom the Cowboys gave up a fifth-round pick.
“Joe is a guy, we obviously know about the talent, but the system that he came from in Tennessee, created some challenges in terms of what he has to learn and things like that,” Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said, via Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News. “The minute these quarterbacks think they’ve figured it all out that’s when it’s probably time for them to do something different. The way defenses attack in this league it makes it almost impossible to relax.”
In 2024, the Patriots used the third overall pick on Drake Maye and a sixth-rounder on Milton. New coach Mike Vrabel traded Milton before the offseason program began and after the team signed veteran Joshua Dobbs to back up Maye.
“Competition creates distinction,” Milton said. “I feel like that was just one of those moments where we compete, [Maye] gets drafted higher than I did, and I go in the sixth round and things don’t go how it’s supposed to. I’m thankful for it.”
Milton led the Patriots to a Week 18 win over the Bills, going 22-of-29 for 241 yards and a touchdown, costing New England the No. 1 overall pick.
“After the Buffalo game, I was like, it’s fun,” Milton said. “I feel like I can keep doing this. I feel like there’s more that I need to let out as far as that Buffalo game.”
Schottenheimer said Milton is in the development stage of his career but noted that veterans Dak Prescott and Will Grier also still are developing.
“I think Dak is in the developmental phase,” Schottenheimer said. “That sounds crazy for a guy who has played that much. There are things that we are tweaking with Dak. I don’t think it’s just for Joe.”
“Ongoing. It never stops. I’ve had young starters and veteran backups. I’ve had veteran starters and young backups. The quarterback position is a position that gets so much scrutiny that you’re always trying to place an emphasis on. Are they getting better? Are they getting consistent? Are they doing the things they need to do? You try to piece that room together, maybe different than other rooms.”
Read the full article here
