SEATTLE — Camden Brown caught two touchdown passes in his first NFL game Saturday night, and afterward he talked about the week that led into it.
Brown’s younger sister died on Aug. 13, 2021. Saturday’s preseason opener at Lumen Field came two days after the fifth anniversary. Doctors did not expect Brown’s sister to reach 4 years old. She lived to 17.
“She had kidney failure,” Brown said. “People said she wasn’t going to make it past three. She still proved people wrong. She lived to 17 years old. So this past week was kind of a little rough for me, because August 13th, 2021, was the day she passed away.
“I’m blessed just living through her every single day,” Brown added. “And I feel like she lived through me today. So that’s just an exciting thing about me every single day, is the way I can share my story and be the best version of myself every single day.”
Brown caught all 3 of his targets for 62 yards in the Dallas Cowboys‘ 17-7 win over the Seattle Seahawks. Sam Howell found him for 39 yards late in the second quarter. Joe Milton III threw a fade from the 2 in the third that Brown caught diving, with one hand.
Camden Brown’s Road From Auburn To Georgia Southern
Brown spent three seasons at Auburn. He had 9 catches for 123 yards and 2 touchdowns as a freshman in 2022, then appeared in 25 games over the next two years with 17 catches for 166 yards and 1 touchdown.
He entered the transfer portal after the 2024 season and enrolled at Georgia Southern that spring.
Brown started all 13 games in 2025 and caught 65 passes for 1,079 yards and 14 touchdowns. He became the first Georgia Southern receiver to reach 1,000 yards in a season and set the school record for receiving touchdowns. His single-game school record came against Southern Miss, 12 catches for 158 yards.
Against Marshall, Brown wore Georgia Southern’s No. 0 jersey, a designation the program uses for leadership. That was the game he crossed 1,000 yards.
Seven rounds passed in April without Brown’s name. He signed with Dallas days later as part of an 11-man undrafted class, and he now says going undrafted was the better outcome.
“I would say it was a great feeling, because I feel like I get to prove people wrong again,” Brown said. “That’s just who I am. That’s been my whole life story. My little sister right here, she done proved everybody wrong. So that’s just who I am. The way my family built, we always prove everybody wrong. So we just continue to do that and be the best version of ourselves every single day we wake up.”
Camden Brown On The Edge He Carries Into Camp
Dallas carries 11 undrafted rookies from this class. Brown’s method for staying out of the group that gets cut starts before he reaches the field.
“I say it’s from the way you wake up,” Brown explained. “From the way you wake up, shoot. Every day you don’t feel complacent. Wake up with an edge. Showing gratitude. Like, don’t show up every day and be like, man, I got to survive today. No, you don’t want to be like that.
“So me as a person, I’m showing up every day with gratitude every single day to play the game I love,” Brown continued. “Every day is football. So it’s a privilege. So that’s the main thing too.”
Brown started all 13 games at Georgia Southern. Availability is what he thinks the league is buying.
“I say being dependable, gaining trust from the coaches, from anybody for real,” Brown said. “Just being dependable and just showing everybody that you can do what you got to do. Be available at all times. So I just feel like just being here in the NFL is just about being available, building trust, building the best version of yourself, and being where your feet are at the end of the day.”
Dallas Cowboys Moved Camden Brown To A New Spot
Dallas moved Brown off flanker for the second touchdown, a position change made during a game he had already scored in. Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said the staff had been building toward it with first-team reps in camp.
“We’ve wanted to get him in there a little bit with the first team, and when we put him in there, he’s done a really good job,” Schottenheimer said. “We actually moved him over to that position for the second one, because he normally plays flanker, and we moved him over there.
“And like I said, the throw from Joe was terrific, but the catch was incredible as well,” Schottenheimer continued. “But, yeah, he’s just consistent, man, and that’s what we want as coaches. We want people that are consistent, they’re the same every day, and they might have a bad day or a dip, but then they bring it right back.”
Brown caught a touchdown from Howell in the second quarter and another from Milton in the third. He has been talking to all three of Dallas’ quarterbacks since camp opened, Prescott included.
“I say talking. Like, communication is the biggest key when you come to football,” Brown said. “Being with a team, just talking. Just have a good conversation with people, and you building it every single day. You have the opportunity to go with a quarterback, this and that.
“I’m talking to Dak, I’m talking to Sam, I’m talking to Joe, I’m talking to everybody,” Brown added. “That’s how you build a connection with a quarterback. JC French was my quarterback at Georgia Southern. I built a connection with him. Peyton Thorne was my quarterback at Auburn. So just building a connection with them. They just text my phone to this day. So it makes you feel like you did something right.”
Milton spent last season learning this offense as a first-year player. Brown is one of the rookies who comes to him with questions.
“I don’t know where to start from with that guy,” Milton said. “Cam is a great person. Great kid, man. Well, he’s an adult now, but younger than me. Great kid, man. Just someone that loves to learn. Someone that literally asks questions every day. He’s one of the people that if he don’t know it, he will ask. That’s probably my biggest thing.”
Howell has thrown to Brown through three weeks in Oxnard. He credits the production to how hard Brown works, not to what Brown can do athletically.
“He’s been having a really good camp,” Howell said. “I love throwing to him. Joe loves throwing to him. Cam’s been a great player. He gets open, and when you throw it to him, he catches it. He works so hard. He puts a lot of extra time into the playbook. It’s cool to see all his hard work come to fruition out here tonight. And the sky’s the limit for that kid.”
Camden Brown On The Receiver Room
Dallas carries George Pickens, CeeDee Lamb, and Ryan Flournoy at the top of the receiver room. Neither Lamb nor Pickens dressed Saturday.
Brown is competing against that group for snaps and taking instruction from it at the same time.
“And that’s for everybody in the room,” Brown said. “I’m just getting knowledge. I’m pouring, everybody pouring into me. So that’s a blessing in itself.”
Brown had been making catches like the Milton fade in Oxnard for three weeks. Saturday was the first one that counted.
“How your dreams come to reality,” Brown said. “That’s just how it is. And every day for the preparation, that’s how I look at it. I feel like I could have came out here and did what I got to do. So just keep doing what I’m doing. It’s preparation. Say it every time.”
Dallas returns to Oxnard, California, with open practices scheduled through Aug. 18. The Cowboys play at the Arizona Cardinals on Aug. 22, with kickoff set for 9 p.m. CT.
