Dallas has seen life without Dak Prescott before, and it wasn’t pretty. Back then, Cooper Rush stepped in. But Rush is wearing purple now, and on August 16, he showed flashes of what Dallas lost. Meanwhile, Joe Milton — the new project quarterback brought in to develop behind Prescott — didn’t come close to matching that presence.

That’s why the noise around Frisco has grown louder, with many urging head coach Brian Schottenheimer to pull the plug on Milton. And then, the national lens came in sharper. NFL Network’s Jane Slater broke down Milton’s struggles in detail, posting a clip on X that summed up the frustration. “Well, if you’re looking at the first two games in the preseason, it shouldn’t give you a lot to be excited about. I mean, just looking at this game on Saturday, any time that Joe Milton handed the ball off, good things simply didn’t happen,” she said. These weren’t the only shortcomings that Slater pointed out.

Slater pulled out a key sequence that painted the bigger picture. It was the early loss of five yards by Miles Sanders that pinned Dallas deep. That set up second and long, and eventually the Ravens cashed in with the sack and safety. Looking at the broader scope, she reminded everyone how poor Dallas’ ground game was last year: just four yards per carry, only six rushing touchdowns, and 1,705 total yards as a team. And Slater put it plainly: “And other words, look, Dallas simply cannot go into this season. One dimensional.” She pointed out the red flags in Milton, but the HC’s reaction?

Schottenheimer came to Milton’s defense while admitting the issues. “What we did in the first half against the Rams, I think we came out a little-bit of a different mindset in terms of trying to run the ball. They got him. They fooled him a little-bit on the safety on the third down there,” he said. “But it’s not all on Joe. We didn’t run it well. We didn’t help him with a couple [of] plays that could’ve settled him down.” The message was clear — Milton’s mistakes weren’t all on his shoulders.

Still, reality keeps circling back to the same point. Milton has the arm to sling it into tight windows, but his reads, timing, and pocket feel just aren’t there yet. And Cowboys fans don’t need a reminder of 2020, when Prescott’s ankle injury forced the carousel of Andy Dalton, Garrett Gilbert, and Ben DiNucci in a 6–10 season. They can’t afford another season wasted. If Prescott goes down, Milton has to speed up his growth—or Dallas has to find an alternative solution or they have to stick with “vanilla offense”.

Joe Milton’s uneven audition amid ‘vanilla offense’

So, Jerry Jones set the tone before kickoff when he joked that he just wanted to see Joe Milton “complete a few” throws. That lighthearted line didn’t age well. On his very first snap, Milton was swallowed up for a safety as Ravens corner Keyon Martin came screaming off the edge untouched. Things didn’t get much better from there. By halftime, Milton’s stat line read just 2-of-8 for 14 yards and one brutal interception in the end zone by safety Reuben Lowery. For a quarterback fighting for the backup job, it was a nightmare start.

Yet, credit where it’s due, Milton didn’t fold. Much like the week before, he found some rhythm in the second half and started slinging the ball with more confidence. He closed out 9-of-18 for 122 yards, highlighted by a 49-yard bomb to Jonathan Mingo that showed why the Cowboys still keep him in the conversation. That one throw had flashes of promise, even if the rest of the night was rocky.

And it almost felt like déjà vu for Cowboys fans. Way back in those August (8th) joint practices with the Rams, the offense drew the label of “vanilla.” The lack of creativity and predictable play-calling, especially in the run game, stuck out. Outside of one solid sweep with Javonte, the backs couldn’t generate much. Schottenheimer admitted as much: “Those present problems for you. We’ll certainly have a better idea of who we’re going up against on game day, but today was more about us. It was just, ‘Hey, throw the ball out there and let’s see what happens.’” So, that means Dak Prescott and co. will rely more on vanilla offense.

But here’s the thing — no one game-plans a joint practice. And yes, they did “throw the ball out there” in ways that gave Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, and George Pickens their highlights. Milton, Jalen Brooks, and KaVontae Turpin even had flashes too. The run game, though, never clicked. That’s why Schottenheimer doubled down: “I’m going to say it again: We’re playing pretty vanilla. We’re just focusing on execution. Can we run block, can we get open, can we pass block?…” Seems like their plan is: stick to the basics, rather than trying the complex gameplays.

Coming back to now, the real question remains whether Milton is even the right choice to back up Prescott. Schottenheimer kept the battle open, and Will Grier didn’t shy away from the spotlight. On his very first attempt, he hit Princeton Fant for 33 yards. He only finished 1-of-5, but the contrast was clear — a veteran unafraid to push the ball versus a new QB still finding his way.