GLENDALE, Ariz. — Joe Milton III threw two touchdown passes and ran for a third, finishing 9-of-13 for 179 yards with no interceptions and a 151.4 passer rating. The Dallas Cowboys beat the Arizona Cardinals 34-13 on Saturday night at State Farm Stadium in front of 62,674, and Dallas is 2-0 through two preseason games.
Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said the roster is talented enough that the position battles will stay tight into final cutdowns, and that nobody on it will be allowed to get complacent.
“I think Joe’s put together two really, really good halves. Sam really made one mistake down in the red zone, kind of got fooled one and turned it over,” Schottenheimer said. “That can’t happen, but this is long from over. And going back to Frisco, thankfully, and get a chance to be home and put some more training camp days in. But got to give Joe his credit. He’s played really well the last two games, but we have a lot of confidence in Sam as well.”
Sam Howell took over in the second half and completed 7-of-10 for 65 yards with an interception and a 47.9 rating. Milton played 31 offensive snaps to Howell’s 28.
Last season, Milton appeared in four games for Dallas and went 15-of-24 for 183 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. New England drafted him in the sixth round in 2024. The Cowboys acquired him last offseason, and he is competing with Howell to back up Dak Prescott.
Milton said he was carrying roughly 75% to 85% of the playbook at this point last year.
“Major difference. You get to do a lot more,” Milton said. “When I say that, there’s a lot more to our offense that we able to do, change as the quarterback position. So you’re able to do all that. You’re able to make sure that your protections is right and making sure the way that you’re reading the play is correct. So just being able to go through that process of a whole year, being in this offense and to now, it’s great.”
“I think it’s all just about being intentional. I was real intentional the whole fall camp with just my base,” Milton continued. “And then when I go into games, it’s pretty much just thinking about my base, especially when I’m taking my drops. I kind of just get my mental process done faster. Shout out to just the hard work that we all put in. But after I say the drop to myself, the only thing I keep saying is base, base, base, base.”
Shavon Revel Jr. Interception Sets Up the First Touchdown
Dallas opened the game with a 12-play, 66-yard drive that reached the Arizona 12 and ended on downs when Milton’s fourth-and-1 pass to Zack Kuntz fell incomplete.
Arizona did not hold the field position long. On third-and-13 at its own 15, Gardner Minshew II went deep middle for Simi Fehoko, and Shavon Revel Jr. picked it off at the Arizona 34 and ran out of bounds at the 12 for a 22-yard return.
Three plays later, on third-and-6, Milton stepped up in the pocket and threw left to Malik Davis for an 8-yard touchdown at 6:33. Revel started five of the seven games he played as a rookie in 2025 and finished with 35 tackles and three passes defensed.
Schottenheimer said the double move to Jonathan Mingo was called off a timeout, and that the last reminder Milton got before the snap, from Steve Shimko, was to put good air under the ball.
“This game is about being able to control the RPMs of the football and throw it with different speeds and touches. And he’s done that at a really high level,” Schottenheimer explained. “But I thought the scramble to his left to Cam was a big play as well. And then he was able to get in with his legs. So the touchdown to Malik, stepped up in the pocket, running to his left, and he just kind of took a little something off and gave Malik a chance to catch it and go.”
The Mingo touchdown came two possessions later. Arizona safety Dadrion Taylor-Demerson was flagged 15 yards for unnecessary roughness on a hit on Kuntz on second-and-13, moving Dallas to its own 47. On the next snap, Milton hit Mingo deep left for a 53-yard score and a 14-0 lead with 3:43 left in the first quarter.
Camden Brown and Jonathan Mingo Split the Big Plays
The two longest Dallas plays of the night belonged to the receivers competing for the back end of the room. Camden Brown caught two passes for 77 yards, including a 70-yarder on third-and-3 from the Dallas 29 that put the ball at the Arizona 1. Milton ran it in on a keeper on the next play for a 21-3 lead.
Mingo caught two passes for 62 yards and the touchdown. He played 18 offensive snaps and seven on special teams, and he fair caught the only punt Arizona kicked in the first half.
Schottenheimer said the Cowboys will start playing the numbers games at receiver in a couple of weeks, and that what Brown has done makes five or six a live question.
“He’s playing with so much confidence. And each week, in and out, beating man to man, the double move was awesome. But the confidence is real,” Schottenheimer said of Mingo. “And he knows he belongs and he knows that he can make plays. But he’s back returning kicks, he’s making tackles on special teams. He’s a football player, and I don’t think I could have said that about him when we got him two years ago or whatever it was. But make no mistake, he is a damn good football player.”
Mingo has felt healthy through this training camp and has been trying to stack good days on top of each other.
“Joe came in the huddle, he just told the whole line. He was just like, yeah, I’ll block long enough, there’s gonna be a touchdown, I promise you,” Mingo said. “I’m like, yeah, this is where I wanna hit Joe. So I had man coverage, so I knew, I’ve been beating man in our camp. So I’m like, do what I’ve been doing in camp, beating man, so that’s what I did.”
Mingo caught one pass for 25 yards in six games with Dallas last season.
Jaydon Blue Carries 15 Times After Missing Practice
Jaydon Blue did not practice all week and still led the game in carries, running 15 times for 75 yards with a long of 15. He added a 26-yard kickoff return and played 27 offensive snaps.
The step Blue said the coaching staff has wanted from him this year runs through pass protection as much as explosiveness.
“Just like I said, just playing fast, playing free, but also playing physical. I think I ran the ball very hard today,” Blue said. “That’s something I wanted to come in this game and do because a lot of people see my speed is what stands out, but a lot of people see me as a outside zone type of guy. But I like running between the tackles. That’s, I’m a dual guy, gap scheme type of guy. But I think tonight really showed that I can carry the ball or have a heavy workload.”
Blue rushed 38 times for 129 yards and a touchdown across five games as a rookie in 2025.
“I think he feels the competition. I think he feels the fact that this is a deep room,” Schottenheimer said. “And then Phil Mafah has a touchdown, and Malik is what he is, so these guys got to go. And it’s been fun for us to watch him in pass protection. But when you don’t practice, it’s hard to go in there and perform the way he did. So that’s progression for him and something that he should take a lot of pride in.”
Israel Abanikanda carried eight times for 39 yards, all of them in the fourth quarter. Dallas signed him to the practice squad on Nov. 30 and to a futures deal on Jan. 6. Phil Mafah carried once, going 15 yards around left end for the final touchdown with 2:05 to play. As a team, Dallas ran 34 times for 175 yards.
Sam Howell’s Half Ends With a Red Zone Interception
Howell’s first drive covered 57 yards on 11 plays and produced a 29-yard field goal from Brandon Aubrey. It also included a sack at the Arizona 17 that pushed Dallas out of scoring range on second-and-8.
His second drive reached the Arizona 12 on 12 plays. On third-and-2, Howell threw deep middle for Anthony Smith, and Isaiah Oliver intercepted it in the end zone for a touchback.
Howell has taken the competition one day at a time, trying to put his best foot forward each day.
“I think we’re getting better every day. We’re moving the ball. I think two games in a row we’ve moved the ball well,” Howell said. “I had a couple mistakes in the game, took a sack in the red zone. Obviously, can’t turn the ball over there. But I think as a group, we’re doing a good job moving football.”
Howell started all 17 games for Washington in 2023. He spent last season in Philadelphia and did not appear in a regular-season game.
Jaishawn Barham Debuts as Dallas Allows One Touchdown
Jaishawn Barham made his first appearance after sitting out the opener with a groin issue. The third-round pick finished with five tackles, four of them solo, and a tackle for loss on 22 defensive snaps.
Blue faced him at Michigan and has been facing him in practice since camp opened.
“He brings juice, physicality. He’s smart. I played him in Michigan, so I already knew what he was able to do,” Blue said. “But just seeing him come out here his first game, be as dominant as he was, it’s really a blessing to have guys like that on the other side of the ball to go against their practice every day.”
Alijah Clark led Dallas with eight tackles. Julius Wood had six and Justin Barron had five. Sam Williams sacked Kedon Slovis for a 9-yard loss in the fourth quarter. LT Overton had the other Dallas sack, dropping Minshew for 8 yards in the second quarter. Dallas took Overton in the fourth round in 2026, 137th overall out of Alabama.
Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker watched his unit hold Arizona to 325 total yards, one touchdown, and 4-of-10 on third down. The Cardinals went 1-of-3 in the red zone and 0-of-1 on fourth down.
Arizona Loses Two Touchdowns to Penalties on One Drive
Cardinals tight end Rivaldo Fairweather was flagged twice on the same possession, and both flags erased touchdowns.
The first came at the Dallas 7 late in the first quarter, when Evan Hull scored on a 7-yard run around right end and offensive holding on Fairweather brought it back. The second came on third-and-13 at the Dallas 13 early in the second quarter, when Minshew found Fairweather for a 13-yard score and Fairweather drew offensive pass interference. Arizona settled for a 38-yard field goal from Chad Ryland.
Fairweather signed with Dallas as an undrafted free agent in 2025 and spent the season on the Cowboys practice squad before Arizona claimed him on Dec. 30.
A 14-play, 59-yard Arizona drive later in the half also stalled inside the 5. The Cardinals were flagged for a false start on third-and-1 at the Dallas 1, Overton sacked Minshew for 8 yards on the next snap, and Ryland kicked a 31-yarder. Arizona finished with eight penalties for 63 yards. Dallas had four for 20.
Aubrey answered with a 50-yarder at the end of the half for a 24-6 lead, then added the 29-yarder in the third quarter. He is 2-of-2 on field goals and 4-of-4 on extra points in the game.
Arizona’s only touchdown came on the opening drive of the second half, a 12-play, 64-yard march that Minshew moved with four completions on five attempts for 39 yards. Corey Kiner scored from a yard out.
Shiyazh Pete Draws an Ovation in Glendale
Shiyazh Pete played six offensive snaps and was cheered by a section of the crowd when he entered late. The undrafted rookie from Shiprock, New Mexico, is believed to be the first player from the Navajo Nation to sign an NFL contract, according to The Dallas Morning News. He broke down the team in the locker room afterward.
Schottenheimer said Pete has been one of the hardest workers he has been around and has moved to guard this summer after playing left tackle in college.
“I saw something that I’ve never seen. An entire fan section cheering for Shiyazh Pete. That was really, really cool,” Schottenheimer said. “When he broke it down, the room went crazy just because he spoke from the heart and he talked about how this family has brought us all together and now we’re bonded for life. He’s doing a good job for us. He had to move into guard and doing different things he hasn’t done. But he’s another guy that fits that play style that we’re talking about. It was really cool to see him have that moment, but also our players join in and helping to celebrate him.”
Pete lost count of the Navajo Nation flags in the stands and spotted a Salish Nation flag as well.
“It’s definitely etched in the history books. I’ll tell you that. It was incredible,” Pete said. “I was trying to find the words of how special and impactful that really was. The fact that I am able to participate on the field and conduct my play to the best of my ability and fans support me for that, for who I am, it’s incredible.”
“What did I see? I saw hope, courage,” Pete added. “Hope and courage.”
Pete started three seasons at New Mexico State, where he was a first-team All-Conference USA selection in 2023, then spent 2025 at Kentucky. Saturday was his father’s 54th birthday, and his family was in attendance.
Injuries and Roster Notes
Wood left in the third quarter with a concussion, and Taylor-Demerson left late in the first quarter with a rib injury, per The Associated Press. Linebacker Curtis Robinson was injured in the third quarter and returned.
Dallas sat 29 players, a group that included Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, KaVontae Turpin, Caleb Downs, Von Miller, Rashan Gary, Tyler Smith, and Quinnen Williams. Asked about the decision to hold out Downs, Schottenheimer said he would not expect to see him on the field much in the finale either.
Kuntz led the team with three catches for 36 yards and played 43 offensive snaps. Dallas claimed him off waivers from Las Vegas on Aug. 6. Luke Schoonmaker was the only other tight end available and played eight snaps, all on the opening drive, which left Dallas in 10 personnel for stretches.
On the offensive line, Trevor Keegan was banged up in practice this week and still started at left guard for 53 snaps. Nick Leverett started at center, Drew Shelton played 55 snaps at left tackle, and Nate Thomas played 31 at right tackle.
Dallas finished with 413 total net yards on 58 plays, 23 first downs, and 6-of-10 on third down. Average drive start was the Dallas 39.
Up Next
The Cowboys host the New Orleans Saints on Friday at 7 p.m. CT at AT&T Stadium in the preseason finale. The game airs on CBS 11 and ESPN. Dallas opens the regular season Sept. 13 against the New York Giants.
