Dak and the Quarterbacks: Cowboys' post-free agency, pre-draft review

Though it hasn't come to a screeching halt, the talent acquisition phase of the offseason has hit a lull in between free agency and the draft. The Dallas Cowboys weren't expected to do much at the quarterback position this offseason, but they did do a relatively significant amount of shuffling this offseason, and there is a reason it's actually noteworthy heading into the draft.

For the third consecutive offseason, the team made moves at the position. In 2024, the club signed franchise starter Dak Prescott to the most lucrative deal in NFL history. Last season, they made a trade to try and find a long-term backup QB and this year they made a move that speaks to their confidence in last year's transaction. Here's a look the quarterback room as they head towards the 2026 draft.

Starter: Dak Prescott

Prescott is set to enter his 11th year in the league in 2026. The 2016 rookie of the year has earned four Pro Bowl bids, and finished Top 3 in Comeback Player of the Year honors twice. More on that in a second. Prescott had a phenomenal year in 2025, passing for over 4,500 yards, with 30 TDs against just 10 interceptions. Thanks to a porous defense which couldn't force turnovers or get off the field, he wasn't in the MVP race, but he certainly was one of the NFL's top QBs last season.

Fans should've expected it. Every year Prescott is healthy, he plays at this level. The problem is that Prescott hasn't turned in back-to-back healthy seasons since last decade, which led to the changes below.

Backups: Sam Howell, Joe Milton

The Cowboys acquired Milton for a late draft pick last year in a trade with New England. Milton has an absolute arm cannon; he's able to fling the ball downfield with unreal ease. It's the rest of the job description that wasn't quite ready in 2025. Milton, a second-year player, performed horribly in the first two preseason games, then showed some promise in the exhibition finale. Dallas head coach Brian Schottenheimer was hesitant to play him in regular-season games though, even blowouts, as the season went down the drain to a 7-9-1 finish.

Without any evidence that Milton can handle extended duty as Prescott's backup, and with the reality that the starter averages just eight starts in his last three even-numbered seasons, the Cowboys had to come up with a contingency plan. Enter Sam Howell, a young veteran with a lot of time under center.

Howell started 18 games across his first two seasons in the league (5-13) with the Washington franchise, but hasn't started since 2023. The likely hope is that Howell is competent enough to get an offense as stacked as the Cowboys through some Prescott missed games, knowing a long-term injury to a franchise QB spells doom for most orgs anyway.

The two will have all of training camp and the preseason to determine the best plan, which could include different players for different scenarios (in-game replacement vs multiple-game starter).

Quarterback Financial Overview

The Cowboys currently have the sixth-most expensive quarterback room in the NFL, allocating $47.1 million of cap space on the position.

Prescott of course is the lion's share after inking a four-year, $240 million extension that began last season and runs through 2028. The team converted almost all of his base salary into a restructure bonus, as was planned, taking advantage of void years to lower his 2026 cap hit to $43.5 million.

Milton enters the third year of his rookie deal, of which there is no bonus allocation for Dallas, that pays him $1.08 million in 2026.

Howell signed a one-year, fully guaranteed $2.5 million deal.

Draft Projection

It's difficult to imagine the Cowboys using one of their draft picks on the quarterback position. They have the young inexperienced guy with the big arm already, and a young veteran. The window for Dak Prescott is at least through 2028, and anyone drafted wouldn't serve much purpose in any transition plan.

This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Dak and the Quarterbacks: Cowboys' post-free agency, pre-draft review