The Dallas Cowboys started slow but finished strong, winning their preseason opener 17-7 over the Seattle Seahawks. After an opening drive where the Seahawks went 80 yards on 13 plays for a touchdown, the defense stiffened and didn’t give up another point en route to the victory.
There were encouraging signs on both sides of the ball, including two fourth-down stops and a goal-line stand by Christian Parker’s defense, but also some areas of concern for Brian Schottenheimer’s team. Here’s the good, the bad, and the ugly for the Cowboys in the win over the Seahawks.
The Good: Passing game excelled with backups
Coming into training camp, the Cowboys needed to find their fifth, and possibly sixth, WR for the roster. They also had an open competition for the backup QB role. Saturday went a long way towards proving their on solid ground in both categories. Sam Howell got the start, Joe Milton began the third quarter. Combined they threw for a 119.5 passer rating, but the true star of the passing game was wideout Camden Brown.
The undrafted free agent wide receiver out of Georgia Southern put on an absolute show in the Pacific Northwest. Brown caught all three of his targets for 62 yards and two sensational scores. The first touchdown came from 39 yards out where the 6-foot-2 WR outfought the defender for the ball near the end of the first half.
It was a beautiful leaping grab from Brown, but his next score was even better. Quarterback Joe MIlton lobbed the ball towards the back corner of the end zone and Brown made the one-handed catch for the two-yard touchdown.
One-handed TD catch for @CamdenBrown7 🔥
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) August 16, 2026
📺: #DALvsSEA on CBS11
📲: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/XM2vIx89QLpic.twitter.com/RMemCAmuLX
Brown proved that he belongs in his first NFL action.
The Bad: Backup secondary was error prone
The Cowboys allowed two of their top three boundary corners for the game, with Daron Bland and Cobie Durant on the sidelines without pads. Shavon Revel had a strong play on the opening drive, but with It was a rough showing for his counterpart Caelon Carson, the third-year cornerback who had garnered some praise from Schottenheimer earlier this offseason. Carson was penalized three times, including twice on the Seahawks’ opening drive that resulted in their only touchdown.
On the first third down of the game, Carson was called for pass interference, giving the Seahawks 19 yards and a new set of downs. A few plays later, Carson was called for a personal foul when he grabbed the facemask of Seahawks running back George Holani.
A few series later, Carson was called for a defensive hold, his third infraction in the game.
Dallas needs depth at CB and Carson looked like one of the better options in training camp, but he didn’t do himself any favors with his undisciplined play in Seattle.
The Ugly: Penalties
Carson was far from the only culprit. The Cowboys had 13 penalties for 103 yards, four of which came on the first two possessions of the game. There was a fifth infraction called on Marist Liufau for holding, but it came on the touchdown for the Seahawks, so it was declined.
The team got off to a bad start, and it never got any better.
The Cowboys were the most penalized team in the league last season, and it’s been an issue for the team going back a few years. They won the game, but Schottenheimer will not be happy with his team’s undisciplined nature.
If cleaning up the penalties were an emphasis in camp, the Cowboys failed in their first attempt to get it right.
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Good, Bad, Ugly: Cowboys passing game still a machine in win over 'Hawks