The Dallas Cowboys have made a move at quarterback. Last season, Dallas slumped to a 7-10 record after franchise starter Dak Prescott suffered a season-ending injury in Week 9 against the Atlanta Falcons. Keen to avoid a repeat of their disastrous 2024 campaign, the team has now traded for a high-potential backup.
Dallas Cowboys Make a Move for Potential Quarterback of the Future
With question marks around the long-term health and ability of Prescott, the Cowboys have made a proactive move. The team has sent a fifth-round pick to the New England Patriots for 2024 rookie Joe Milton III and a seventh-rounder.
The Patriots are trading QB Joe Milton III and a seventh-round pick to Dallas in exchange for a fifth rounder, per source.
Milton drew interest from multiple teams but ends up with the Cowboys. pic.twitter.com/pCfDbcWsTy
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) April 3, 2025
Milton flashed when given a chance in 2024, playing 61 snaps in the team’s Week 18 win over the Buffalo Bills. His mobility and strong arm were on display as he completed 22 of 29 passes for 241 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for another score.
Milton’s performance brought a smile to Patriots owner Robert Kraft’s face, as he later suggested the team had drafted two top quarterbacks.
Milton ranked seventh out of all 31 qualified QBs for Week 18 with a B- grade (80.8) in QB+, PFSN’s proprietary QB metric. That was the second-best QB+ of the season for New England (behind Drake Maye in Week 16 against the Bills) and the 14th-best Patriots single-game QB+ since the start of 2019.
Maye, meanwhile, finished the season ranked 19th in QB+ with a grade of 74.7, which was considered a C performance.
Trade Talk for Joe Milton III Has Been Going On for Months
Milton’s brief appearance was enough to spark trade talk, which made sense since the Patriots had already drafted Maye to be the team’s franchise quarterback with the No. 3 overall pick in the same 2024 draft. While it was likely that teams would wait before jumping in, PFF senior NFL analyst Steve Palazzolo revealed in January that there had been interest.
“Hearing multiple QB-needy teams have inquired about Patriots QB Joe Milton,” Palazzolo had posted.
Dallas wouldn’t normally be seen as a “QB-needy” team, but since drafting Prescott, their only two losing seasons were the two years he played fewer than 12 games. The team has some work to do to raise its ceiling, but when Prescott is hurt, the floor drops out.
Cooper Rush got off to a rough start replacing Prescott in 2024 but helped steady the ship, going 4-4 in his eight starts. With Rush now in Baltimore with the Ravens, Milton gives Dallas a solid backup option and a possible future starter.