The Dallas Cowboys did not go undefeated in the preseason for the first time since 2006 as they had hoped to add more fuel to their Super Bowl hopes for 2026.
And they certainly didn’t play with the same energy on offense and defense in the half of last night’s 27-24 loss to the New Orleans Saints at AT&T Stadium as they did the first two preseason wins over the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals.
The outcome doesn’t matter. It’s preseason.
Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer wasn’t happy with the first-half play style as his team looked lethargic and much like a team off a long four-week stay in California for training camp.
The Cowboys were down 17-9 at halftime and 24-9 after three quarters before making a fourth quarter rally to tie the game behind two touchdown passes from Sam Howell and a Howell two-point run to tie the game before losing to the Saints on a late field goal.
The Cowboys had too many penalties and gave up too many yards on on the ground early.
The Saints rushed 32 times for 169 yards with 119 on 18 carries coming in the first half.
Offensively, quarterback Joe Milton reverted back to his consistent form in the first half after two stellar outings against the Seahawks and Cardinals.
Milton completed eight of 15 passes for 92 yards, while Howell was 12 of 18 passing for 155 yards with touchdowns of 26 yards to undrafted rookie receiver Jordan Hudson and 21 yards to tight end Mitch Van Vooren, who signed with the Cowboys for depth purposes on Monday.
It opened the door for a game and experienced Howell, who was been better on the practice field throughout training camp, to possibly the steal the backup job behind starter Dak Prescott.
The main goal on Friday was to stay healthy and keep the starters in bubble wrap as the focus now turns to final cuts on Sunday and the season opener against the New York Giants on Sept. 13 when their push to reach the Super Bowl for the first time since their last title following the 1995 season begins in earnest.
What was most interesting on Friday was the players who did not suit up, likely signifying they had already earned a spot on the final roster.
In addition to Prescott, receivers CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens along with rest of the starters and primary contributors, receiver Jonathan Mingo stood comfortably on the sidelines for the first time all preseason.
Mingo had seemingly been in a battle with undrafted rookie Camden Brown for the final receiver spot on the roster. But he appears to a firm lock for No. 5 behind Lamb, Pickens, Ryan Flournoy and KaVontae Turpin.
Now the question will be whether Cowboys keep five or six receivers for Brown to stick.
If he gets cut, then the Cowboys will have to sweat out the possibly of him getting claimed by another team before he could be put back on the practice squad.
It also interesting that running backs Malik Davis and Jaydon Blue were on the sideline with starter JaVonte Williams, likely signifying their spots on the roster at the primary backups the position.
NFL teams must trim their active rosters from 90 to 53 players by the official deadline on Sunday, August 30, 2026, at 5:00 p.m.
