Possible reason they chose Howell over Milton

[Reality]

This might have been mentioned in one of the other threads, but just in case it was not ..

I'm not sure the decision was based on which player was better.

If the Cowboys had released Howell and no one claimed him, they would have still had to pay him $2 million for the 2026 season (it's guaranteed) along with the $500k already paid to him as a signing bonus (so $2.5 million money and salary cap hit).

By releasing Milton, if he's not claimed then the Cowboys owe him nothing and will take no salary cap hit and can bring him back to their PS if he wants to return.

Since Schottenheimer said they were "neck and neck", that likely explains why they chose to release Milton when they needed the roster spot for Demearcado.

 

[Coogiguy03]

This might have been mentioned in one of the other threads, but just in case it was not ..

If the Cowboys had released Howell and no one claimed him, they would have still had to pay him $2 million for the 2026 season (it's guaranteed) along with the $500k already paid him as a signing bonus.

By releasing Milton, if he's not claimed then the Cowboys owe him nothing and will take no salary cap hit.

Since Schottenheimer said they were "neck and neck", that likely explains why they chose to release Milton when they needed the roster spot for Demearcado.

His last game really gave him the edge I'm not sure I'm buying that, however I do feel like he's the more traditional option to have at QB. Not saying he's great, not saying that Milton sucks. It's a trust issue to me

 

[Reality]

His last game really gave him the edge I'm not sure I'm buying that, however I do feel like he's the more traditional option to have at QB. Not saying he's great, not saying that Milton sucks. It's a trust issue to me

Schottenheimer said they were "neck and neck" so $2.5 million guaranteed would tilt that scale especially if he signed with another team as a free agent if he cleared waivers.

I get the emotional factor you have with this, but this was not about which is better or worse, but simply a likely reason why the Cowboys made the decision they did when they needed the roster spot and were forced to choose.

They can still bring Milton back to the PS if he clears waivers and wants to return.

If they had done it in the reverse order, then they risked paying $2.5 million (money and salary cap) to Howell to play for another team.

 

[Q_the_man]

Why not keep all 3? Makes no sense to have only 2 QBs on the roster.

If Dak has to miss a couple games, we must then sign a backup that has to be ready in 5 days in case our backup gets banged up.

 

[Coogiguy03]

Schottenheimer said they were "neck and neck" so $2.5 million guaranteed would tilt that scale especially if he signed with another team as a free agent if he cleared waivers.

I get the emotional factor you have with this, but this was not about which is better or worse, but simply a likely reason why the Cowboys made the decision they did when they needed the roster spot and were forced to choose.

They can still bring Milton back to the PS if he clears waivers and wants to return.

If they had done it in the reverse order, then they risked paying $2.5 million (money and salary cap) to Howell to play for another team.

Makes sense, in your opinion who do you think won the spot???

 

[Coogiguy03]

Why not keep all 3? Makes no sense to have only 2 QBs on the roster.

If Dak has to miss a couple games, we must then sign a backup that has to be ready in 5 days in case our backup gets banged up.

LOL LOL POST THIS AGAIN!!! Exactly I thought they actually gave a roster spot for an extra QB because of this reason??? Anyways you're right we will have to find one, who we find won't know our system, should have just kept who you know. Get rid of seatbelt Carlson lol instead to save a roster spot!!

 

[Cowboyny]

I think they preferred Howell cause of his consistency, just didn’t know which Milton would show up.

 

[reddyuta]

Howell is more likely to be claimed off PS than Milton.

 

[CashMan]

I am guessing, Milton's ego grew when ex-players in the media and on podcasts kept saying he is a starter in this league. Rather than dealing with this, the Cowboys released him. Did he ask for his release? Maybe.

 

[FoxF]

I saw Milton as a developmental guy who seemed to be progressing. Thats the whole point right? Didn’t really matter if he is the backup, more about the future. Traded for him and the team gave up already after he showed remarkable improvement this preseason. Maybe there are character concerns or something we don't know about, but I just don’t get it.

 

[Reality]

Makes sense, in your opinion who do you think won the spot???

I think both are good backup options and will/would be comfortable with either being the backup.

I think Milton played better in preseason, but it's hard to judge their performance in training camp because we didn't get to see all of the plays they made and the ones we could see were from bad camera angles.

I was surprised with them choosing Howell over Milton, but after looking into their contracts that's when I realized the money and salary cap factor that likely played a role in the Cowboys' choice.

 

[Hadenough]

His last game really gave him the edge I'm not sure I'm buying that, however I do feel like he's the more traditional option to have at QB. Not saying he's great, not saying that Milton sucks. It's a trust issue to me

Exactly! I feel like Howell can run an NFL offense better in the regular season and throws the short balls and mid range with more consistency. Cowboys made the right choice.

 

[Reality]

Why not keep all 3? Makes no sense to have only 2 QBs on the roster.

If Dak has to miss a couple games, we must then sign a backup that has to be ready in 5 days in case our backup gets banged up.

I agree with you. The truth is though that most teams view QB3 as potentially replaceable if they need a roster spot and need to move him to the PS.

My guess is the Cowboys needed a roster spot for the new running back via trade and felt that releasing a player, who was third (again, factoring in the money) on depth chart for his position that would likely be inactive every game day, was better than releasing second or third depth players from other positions with a higher chance of being active on game days.

My guess is they plan to sign him to PS and likely told Milton that when they released him if he is not claimed.

I would not be surprised if they told him the reason was the salary cap hit and that he was still in the running for QB2 to get him to choose the Cowboys PS over another team's PS should he clear waivers.

Again, this is not me agreeing with the decision, just guessing what their reasoning was behind the decision.

 

[acr731]

Meh.........

I'll stick with Jerry wanting to avoid his buddy feeling threatened.

 

[AmericasTeam81]

I guess this is going to be the main topic of discussion that gets us through to week 1.

 

[plymkr]

Why not keep all 3? Makes no sense to have only 2 QBs on the roster.

If Dak has to miss a couple games, we must then sign a backup that has to be ready in 5 days in case our backup gets banged up.

I agree. I think they should, and could, have kept all 3.

 

[plymkr]

This might have been mentioned in one of the other threads, but just in case it was not ..

I'm not sure the decision was based on which player was better.

If the Cowboys had released Howell and no one claimed him, they would have still had to pay him $2 million for the 2026 season (it's guaranteed) along with the $500k already paid him as a signing bonus (so $2.5 million money and salary cap hit).

By releasing Milton, if he's not claimed then the Cowboys owe him nothing and will take no salary cap hit and can bring him back to their PS if he wants to return.

Since Schottenheimer said they were "neck and neck", that likely explains why they chose to release Milton when they needed the roster spot for Demearcado.

I thought maybe you were going in a different direction with this. I agree it could be money but I wonder if Milton may be toxic or have some personality issues. I don't know if it's been mentioned in another thread so I'd thought I'd bring it up here. But he was traded from the Pats because he "carried himself like he was the starter" and they didn't want that in the locker room. So now he is released from the Cowboys and it's a strange and shocking release so maybe Joe isn't a great locker room guy.

Don't get me wrong, I want him here and pretty disappointed he got waived, but I'm just throwing out a thought I had that would explain it.

 

[plymkr]

I guess this is going to be the main topic of discussion that gets us through to week 1.

Lol, it was a good distraction today from my normal Monday routine so I think you're right. At the end of the day if this is the worst drama we have then it's still a good offseason.

 

[Reality]

I thought maybe you were going in a different direction with this. I agree it could be money but I wonder if Milton may be toxic or have some personality issues. I don't know if it's been mentioned in another thread so I'd thought I'd bring it up here. But he was traded from the Pats because he "carried himself like he was the starter" and they didn't want that in the locker room. So now he is released from the Cowboys and it's a strange and shocking release so maybe Joe isn't a great locker room guy.

Don't get me wrong, I want him here and pretty disappointed he got waived, but I'm just throwing out a thought I had that would explain it.

I think at this point it's wrong to suggest his attitude or anything outside of performance and/or money led to the Cowboys decision unless something gets shared by an official source.

If Milton had any attitude problems, the Cowboys would have moved on from him long before now.

As for his time on the Patriots I remember hearing him say he handled it wrong and you also have to remember he was competiting with other young and unproven quarterbacks so of course he thought he was the best just like most young players would in that situation.

 

[DandyDon52]

Schottenheimer said they were "neck and neck" so $2.5 million guaranteed would tilt that scale especially if he signed with another team as a free agent if he cleared waivers.

I get the emotional factor you have with this, but this was not about which is better or worse, but simply a likely reason why the Cowboys made the decision they did when they needed the roster spot and were forced to choose.

They can still bring Milton back to the PS if he clears waivers and wants to return.

If they had done it in the reverse order, then they risked paying $2.5 million (money and salary cap) to Howell to play for another team.

LOL Cap boy and jerry would not have liked that !
I think they plan on getting milton back if he clears.