(by Ross Jacobs)
Yet another game of all backups. I guess that’s all we’re going to get this year. At least there were a few interesting names to go over here.
Overall, I thought the Saints played the better game here, and obviously they won in the end. They moved the ball pretty much at will and had a commanding lead until Sam Howell came in for Dallas. More on him in a moment. But the Saints are obviously a team on the rise. Kellen Moore has got them playing with discipline and energy. The overall talent isn’t there yet to really compete, but I’ll bet they are going to be a tough out for a lot of good teams this year and they have a real chance to take down the NFC South.
The Cowboys backups looked fine. Hard to take much away from this game.
Player Notes...
-- So obviously after this game the Cowboys released Joe Milton, much to the consternation of casual Cowboys fans. I can’t say I understand their position though. As usual the masses are falling for the trap of seeing the big athletic kid with a rocket arm and assuming he’s got sky high potential. And in a sense Milton does, but he has never once shown any type of consistency, certainly nothing to suggest he’s developing into an NFL starting caliber player. He was very scattershot here like always, and the offense instantly got a boost the second Sam Howell came in. Milton had a chance to win the job and he didn’t seize the moment.
Why Howell has gotten constant disrespect his entire career is beyond me. I’ve been a fan since he was drafted, and even though he’s not good enough to be a starting QB, he is definitely one of the better backups in the league. The operation of the offense was noticeably smoother with him than Milton, and he did what he always does when he gets a chance…drove the football down the field and scored. Howell has never had great tools and his aggressiveness gets him into trouble occasionally, but the guy has a lot of moxie. He was absolutely the right choice to keep over Milton.
-- On the Saints side we know what Spencer Rattler is at this point, but I was curious to see if Zach Wilson still had some life left in him. Sadly, I think the ship has sailed on him ever regaining a starting job. He’s definitely improved in some departments, and the strong arm is still there, but I didn’t see any signs of a Sam Darnold level rise hiding in the weeds.
-- Both Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah were cut after this game. Blue didn’t play here as the Cowboys had clearly already decided he wasn’t making the final cut. Blue has been a complete disaster from Day 1, and let’s not forget how many mainstream analysts tried their hardest to sell Blue as some huge sleeper and breakout star last year…
Mafah did get one final look, but Dallas decided they could do better I guess. Mafah is a decent power runner but I guess he never showed enough juice to make him worth keeping around. He should be on a roster somewhere even if he’s just a third back.
-- On the Saints side both Audric Estime and Kendre Miller got a final look as well, and both of them ended up making the final roster. Miller looked a bit faster and more decisive than he has in the past, and Estime was his usual steady self.
-- I’ve seen some people hyping up Saints rookie WR Bryce Lance as someone that could step up while Jordyn Tyson is out with injuries, but he was playing a good bit here and I just do not see it yet. His athleticism is his superpower and there have been no flashes of it yet. Maybe we’ll start to see it more as he gets comfortable later in the season. He’s going to have to play early you would think as the Saints kept just 4 receivers on the roster other than Tyson who is on IR, two of them rookies Lance and Barion Brown who is really more of a special teamer.
And speaking of the Saints receiver room, if you need a cheap starter for your Flex position or in deeper leagues early in the season that’s going to get a good amount of volume, Devaughn Vele is being completely ignored once again. Every time he plays he produces pretty well.
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