The Cowboys came into AT&T Stadium hoping that preseason Week 2 would produce clarity. Instead, they left with a series of clarifying failures. Baltimore won 31-13. And that scoreline is a well and true reflection of how out of order the America’s Team really was.

Jimmy Johnson once said, “Do you want to be safe and good, or do you want to take a chance and be great?” Alas, the modern-day Cowboys are far from ‘creating’ a chance, let alone taking one. Right from Baltimore’s first possession, the Ravens seized control of the tempo. And everyone watched Dallas’ defense yield chunk plays that quickly set the tone for the rest of the night. So, let’s unpack what went wrong…

Quarter by quarter: the unraveling

• First Quarter: After the safety, Baltimore added a field goal, only to see Booth’s pick-six briefly tilt the momentum back. 7-5. ‘How’bout—‘ Not so quick… The Ravens responded with a 13-play touchdown drive, capped by Keith Kirkwood’s grab. Dallas trailed 12-7 and never led again.

• Second Quarter: Sanders flashed some juice, carrying the Cowboys across midfield, but a failed fourth-and-1 killed that drive. Milton’s interception before halftime gave Baltimore another shot, and Tyler Loop drilled a 47-yard field goal to make it 18-7 at the break.

• Third Quarter: Milton’s lone highlight was a deep strike to Mingo for 49 yards, which set up a field goal. But Baltimore answered with another three points, extending the lead to 21-10.

• Fourth Quarter: Dallas’ offense sputtered once more, managing just another field goal. The Ravens slammed the door with a short D’Ernest Johnson touchdown run and yet another Loop field goal, the 31-13 final as merciful as it was inevitable.

Milton’s uneven audition

Jerry Jones had joked pregame that he’d like to see Joe Milton “complete a few” throws. He did eventually, but his audition for the backup role behind Dak Prescott veered quickly off script.

Milton’s night couldn’t have started much worse. His first snap ended in a sack for a safety when Ravens corner Keyon Martin came off the edge untouched. By the end of the half, he had completed just two of eight throws for 14 yards, with his last attempt picked off in the end zone by safety Reuben Lowery.

To his credit, Milton regrouped after halftime in a way that echoed his showing from the previous week. He closed out the game 9-for-18 with 122 yards, including a 49-yard strike to Jonathan Mingo that flashed the big-play potential that keeps the Cowboys intrigued.

“It wasn’t just Joe,” Brian Schottenheimer said. “We didn’t get in a rhythm.” But Joe’s performance was a reminder of how far he still has to go before he can be trusted with meaningful snaps. Dallas has time, at least two more years after this season, to see if they can mold him into something steady.

For now, the bigger question might be whether Milton is even the best option to back up Dak Prescott. Schottenheimer made it clear the competition remains open, and Will Grier added a wrinkle against Baltimore. On his first snap, Grier hit tight end Princeton Fant for 33 yards.

Grier finished just 1-for-5, but the contrast was striking: a veteran willing to take a shot versus a rookie still learning how to get out of his own way.

Defense flashes, but fades late

There were bright spots, such as Andrew Booth’s pick-six, which flipped the momentum early, Kemon Hall added another takeaway, and Damone Clark was everywhere in the middle. But those flashes couldn’t cover the bigger trend. Baltimore converted 8 of 17 third downs, hit on its lone fourth-down try, and rolled up 399 total yards. The Cowboys’ defense had moments of energy but couldn’t finish enough series.

Running game nowhere to be found

If there was a single concern that stood out offensively, it was the backfield. Dallas managed just 51 yards on 20 carries and an average of 2.6 yards per attempt. Miles Sanders, brought in to stabilize the ground game, found only 15 yards on seven attempts. Deuce Vaughn and Phil Mafah didn’t change the picture either. Whether it was blocking breakdowns or hesitation at the line, Dallas couldn’t find rhythm on the ground.

Starters stayed in warmups only

Pregame offered a bit of theater. Dak Prescott and most of the healthy starters dressed out for warmups, even jogging through pregame routines. But it was just for show. By kickoff, Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, and most of the front-line players remained on the sideline. In fact, only seven of the projected 22 starters saw the field.

While many teams across the league have given starters at least a few snaps this August, Dallas has leaned toward holding them out entirely.

A troubling pattern is emerging

Even if the Cowboys leaned on backups, this was the second consecutive week where their offense failed to sustain much of anything. They closed the first quarter with minus-5 total yards, went into halftime with just 31, and finished the night at 176 on only seven first downs. Their third-down efficiency kept the defense on the field, and Baltimore exploited it by controlling the ball for more than 40 minutes. Dallas managed under 20.

Schottenheimer wasn’t letting his team brush it off as just another August misstep. “The bottom line is this: We’re not going to say that that’s just a preseason game,” he said. “We’re going to look at it, because the fact that we really lost both halves, that is something that we have to get corrected. There’s too many good football players, too many good coaches for us to perform the way that we did tonight.”

Dallas has some days before its preseason finale against Atlanta. Whether the staff uses it to finally get starters a series or two or sticks with the current plan, the question is less about who plays and more about whether the offense can show basic rhythm before Week 1.