FRISCO, Texas — Players rarely complain when they are traded to the Dallas Cowboys. So, it’s not a surprise to learn that Joe Milton III was just fine with the early April trade that sent him from New England to Dallas.
Following Thursday’s organized team activities at The Star, the second-year quarterback called the move a “blessing” for the following reasons.
Warm weather. Home games played indoors. “It’s America’s Team.” “It’s great to learn from somebody like Dak (Prescott).”
Milton was selected by the Patriots with the 193rd pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, a disappointing outcome for a player who had hoped to go as early as the second round. He didn’t play in a regular-season game until Week 18, getting the majority of the work in an impressive showing. The last thing he was thinking at the time was that he’d be with a different team in 2025.
Milton said he was genuinely surprised to find out on April 3 that he was being traded along with a 2025 seventh-round pick in exchange for a 2025 fifth-round pick. New England drafted quarterback Drake Maye third overall in 2024. He’s the future of the franchise. Apparently, the Patriots didn’t think there would be enough opportunities for a second young arm on the roster.
“We felt like his reps were gonna be decreased as we worked through the offseason,” New England coach Mike Vrabel told reporters of the trade in April. “And we felt just like every other decision, we’re gonna try to do what’s best for the team, and that’s the decision that we ultimately made.”
Milton’s exceptional game against Buffalo, which included completing 22 of 29 passes for 241 yards, one passing touchdown and one rushing touchdown, was enough to create serious interest from the Cowboys. They were looking to get younger behind Prescott. Rather than draft a prospect, they traded for one that had already impressed in an NFL game.
“I went in there and did what the play caller and head coach wanted me to do, and that’s win the game,” Milton said. “I didn’t know what was going to happen. It was the last game of the season. I was just going off happy. I went out with a win in my first game ever in the NFL. That’s pretty much all I was thinking about, until two months later and boom, I’m here.
“After the Buffalo game, I was like, it’s fun. I feel like I can keep doing this. I feel like there is more that I need to let out. I was just having fun. It’s probably one of the best days of my life.”
Milton struggled at times last week during the first OTA practice open to reporters, throwing two interceptions during 11-on-11 team drills. On Thursday, he was much more accurate, looking confident as he threw only one incomplete pass during his reps with the second-team offense. He connected downfield on multiple big plays, including one on a seam route to tight end Princeton Fant.
“I was excited about Joe before we got him,” Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said. “When you go into these deals and you’re talking about making trades, we all reach out to people that you know, people that you trust, people that have been exposed to said player at college, different programs, friends that have been around him. And you just dig and you ask and you get different opinions and there’s always an outlier, good and bad, with each of them. You try to peel those away.
“But from the time he’s been here, the work ethic is incredible. He’s one of the first people in the building. He’s one of the last to leave. The way he’s attacked the playbook and picking it up has been incredible. And it’s been fun for me to watch Dak and Will (Grier), but really Dak take a mentorship role with Joe. The talent speaks for itself. You guys will see it. He made some incredible throws (last week). He’s just an exciting young prospect that I think the sky’s the limit for.”
Milton has a unique way he learns a new offense. The traditional dry-erase board doesn’t work for him. He prefers a piece of tape and poker chips. The tape is the line of scrimmage and the poker chips have letters written on them to symbolize the different skill position players. He prefers moving the chips over having to erase the board.
His girlfriend has the script. She calls out a play. Milton repeats it back. He then goes to his chips and lines them up in the formation. The plan is to do that every day during the month between the end of minicamp and the start of training camp.
“It’s way different,” Milton said of the Cowboys’ offensive language. “This offense here brings me back more to my college days. My last offense was more everybody get tagged on which routes. This offense here is more fast and for sure explosive.
“… I feel like we’re taking the right step in the right direction every day. We’re paying attention to small details.”
Milton envisions a great opportunity to learn from an experienced veteran like Prescott, who has started 122 NFL games. Schottenheimer believes Dallas has the ideal quarterback room for a 25-year-old Milton to grow as a player.
“It never stops,” Schottenheimer said. “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.
“It is something you talk about, the mixing and matching and how it looks. I’ve heard other stories where some rooms didn’t get along great and that’s never a good thing. But we don’t have that here. We have a great room. With Dak, Joe and Will, it’s been awesome.”