It’s hard to draw conclusions about the 2026 season for the Dallas Cowboys from a meaningless preseason opener when all the starters, led by quarterback Dak Prescott sat on the sideline out of harm’s way.
But a 17-7 victory against the Seattle Seahawks in the preseason opener helped confirm some things the Cowboys have been seeing in training starting with the official coming out party for undrafted rookie receiver Camden Brown.
Brown has been flashing and making plays since the start of training camp. His growth was rewarded with past week with the Cowboys giving him reps with the first team.
It’s one thing to do it in practice. It’s another to do it under the lights of a game. Brown showed that he is ready for primetime with two highlight touchdown receptions against the Seahawks.
He ended the first half, fighting off a defender and catching a prayer from quarterback Sam Howell in coverage, for a 39-yard score.
He opened the third quarter with a 21-yard reception from Joe Milton and then a one-handed catch for a two-yard score to put the Cowboys up 17-7.
Brown is not only in the running for a roster spot after not getting drafted out of Georgia Southern but could he be in the mix for the fifth or sixth receiver spot ahead of veteran Jonathan Mingo and Marquez Valdes-Scantling.
“The game is not too big for him,” Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said. “He does that every day in practice. We see it all the time. And what I love about him is he does the little things to. He’s got to keep stacking good days like he has been doing. He’s just consistent. We want people that are consistent.
Speaking of roster and position battles, Milton and Howell both had solid outings in their competition to be Prescott’s primary backup.
Howell got the start and showed patience in the pocket. He had a couple of timely third-down conversion to Mingo on slants that led to a field goal.
Of course, the big play to Brown stood out.
Howell completed 8 of 12 passes for 94 yards and a quarterback rating of 118.1 in the first half
Milton took over after halftime and opened with a methodical 13-play, 84-yard scoring drive. Milton finished 12 of 15 for 107 yards with a quarterback rating of 118.6
Look for Milton to get the start in next Saturday’s preseason game at the Arizona Cardinals.
Other notables from the game include:
- The Cowboys still commit too many penalties. It has been a bugaboo for years and it showed up against the Seahawks. The Cowboys were flagged six times for 59 yards in the first half alone, including three times on opening touchdown drive by the Seattle offense. The Cowboys finished the game with 13 penalties for 103 yards. “We obviously need to clean up the penalties,” Schottenheimer said.
- That opening drive on defense, which was the first ever Christian Parker as a coordinator and play caller, was marred by the penalties. Two were by cornerback Caelen Carson, who was flagged for pass interference and defensive holding. They also overshadowed first round-pick Caleb Downs’s debut in a Cowboys uniform. Downs was on the field for the first seven plays before taking a seat. He opened at safety and saw snaps at slot cornerback. But didn’t get in on much action. Downs will start in the regular season at slot cornerback.
- Shavon Revel, a third-round pick in 2025, only played the first seven plays but he flashed solid coverage on the one play in his direction. If he had looked up, it might have turned into a pick six. Revel is competing Cobie Durant for the starting spot at cornerback opposite DaRon Bland.
- Edge rusher Malachi Lawrence, the team’s other first round pick, showed flashes. But the two most impressive edge rushers on Saturday night were Marist Liafau, who had a tackle for a loss and James Houston, who had a sack and several pressures. He had another sack that was negated by a penalty. The Cowboys defense finished with three sacks in the game.
- The backup offensive line struggled in the run game. Depth at that position is a huge concern for the Cowboys. Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah rushed 11 times for 25 yards in the first half as they didn’t have much room to run. The Cowboys gave Blue a lot of work in his bid be the primary backup to JaVonte Williams. Blue had eight carries for 19 yards and two catches for 15 yards. Mafah had three carries for six yards and 1 catch for six yards. Mafah left the game in the second quarter with a chest injury and didn’t return.
- The runner who had the most success was Malik Davis. He had 39 yards on seven carries and refuses to be overlooked at the running back position.
- The Cowboys special teams continues to be work a in progress. They gave up a 52-yard punt return to Rashad Rochelle and had two penalties on special teams. And the returner/receiver Traeshon Holden muffed a punt inside the 5-yard line allowing a recovery by the Seahawks in the fourth quarter. Perhaps Holden was feeling the pressure of Brown to make a play in competition for a roster spot. But it was a horrible decision.
- Although things didn’t start great for the Cowboys defense, giving up a score on the opening drive. The overall performance by Parker’s unit was more than acceptable, which was evident on the drive after the Holden fumble. The Cowboys kept the Seahawks out of the end zone. Seattle moved inside the red zone four times and got just seven points. There were three stops on downs and a missed field goal. Good start of Parker and a unit that finished 32nd in the league last year. The Cowboys defense forced four three and and outs and had two other drives in which they limited Seattle to just six plays. And then there was the four-play drive after the muffed punt when they turned Seattle away after getting the ball at the 5-yard line. The Cowboys gave up an 8-yard score on opening drive and just 76 yards the rest of the way.
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