August 25, 2022

Report: Cowboys to lose LT Tyron Smith likely for 'multiple months'

By Jimmy Kempski
PhillyVoice Staff

Jerry Habraken/Imagn Content Services, LLC

Cowboys LT Tyron Smith (77)

Dallas Cowboys starting left tackle Tyron Smith will likely miss "multiple months" with a torn hamstring suffered during practice, according to ESPN. "More reviews to fully determine the severity of the injury are planned for Thursday," per the report.

Over the first five seasons of his career, Smith only missed one game. Over the his last six seasons, Smith has missed 32 games. He missed six games in 2021, 14 games in 2020, and three games every season from 2016-2019. A recap his six-year injury history, via DraftSharks.com:

Date	Injury	Time missed
9/23/16	Back Vertebral Disc Bulge	Hurt in practice, Smith missed 2 games.
12/26/16	Knee MCL Sprain Grade 2	Smith missed Week 17 but returned for the Divisional Round on January 15.
11/5/17	Inguinal Groin Strain Grade 2	Smith missed the final 6 snaps of Week 9 -- plus the next 2 games.
12/17/17	Knee Patella Sprain	Smith sprained his knee and missed 1 quarter.
12/24/17	Knee Patella Sprain	Smith re-injured his right knee and was placed on IR.
10/4/18	Back Lower Lumbar Sprain/Pull Unspecified Grade 1	Smith's injury was described as back "tightness." He battled through back pain going forward but never missed a game because of it.
11/18/18	Cervical Neck	Smith missed 2 games with a neck injury.
9/29/19	Ankle Sprain	Smith sprained his ankle against the Saints, and missed the next two games.
9/18/20	Cervical Neck	Smith suffered a neck injury during individual drills ahead of Week 2 game against the Falcons. He was inactive for two games
10/8/20	Cervical Neck Fracture	Smith suffered a setback with his neck injury ahead of Week 5 game. He was placed on IR ending his 2020 season.
8/2/21	Arm Elbow Infection	Smith was limited at practice in training camp due to elbow tendinitis.
10/17/21	Pedal Ankle Sprain/Pull Unspecified Grade 1	Smith suffered an ankle injury during Week 6's game against the Patriots. He managed to finish the game.
10/31/21	Pedal Ankle Sprain Grade 2	Smith suffered an ankle bone spur during Week 8's game against the Vikings. He missed three games
12/12/21	Pedal Ankle Sprain Grade 2	Smith aggravated an ankle injury in Week 14's game against Washington. He missed two games

So to recap, that's his back, neck, elbow, knee, groin, ankle, and God only knows what else never got reported. Add a serious hamstring injury to the list.

Despite Smith's alarming injury history and the extreme likelihood that they would miss Smith for at least some time this season, the Cowboys don't have much of a contingency plan. Pre-injury, the Cowboys' offensive line starting five looked like this:

LT	LG	C	RG	RT
Tyron Smith	Tyler Smith	Tyler Biadasz	Zack Martin	Terence Steele

They only have three reserve linemen who have ever taken an NFL snap, and only one of those players is an offensive tackle:

OG Connor McGovern: 14 career starts, 1106 career snaps.
OT Aviante Collins: 77 career snaps, last saw the field in 2019.
C Matt Farniok: Played 23 snaps as a rookie last season

They also have second-year pro Josh Ball and rookie Matt Waletzko, who has been banged up throughout training camp and is probably more of a developmental prospect anyway.

The most likely fix for the Cowboys, in my view, is that they will move rookie LG Tyler Smith to LT, with Connor McGovern filling in at LG.

Tyler Smith was Dallas' first-round pick in 2022. He has an intriguing blend of size and athleticism. He also has a mean streak, and some fun highlights. He is considered a high ceiling prospect, but he is also a very raw prospect who has a lot to clean up in his game, as he had 16 (!) penalties (12 for holding) in 2021 playing again lower-level competition at Tulsa.

When the Cowboys drafted Tyler Smith, they viewed him as the LGOTP, LTOTF," or "left guard of the present, left tackle of the future." In other words, the plan was for him to play guard until he was ready to replace Tyron Smith. In theory, that sounded like a reasonable enough plan, until you factor the following:

Tyler Smith hasn't played guard since high school. Inserting him in immediately as the starting LG is easier said than done, and and required him to rep there exclusively throughout the summer.
Tyron Smith was almost certain to miss time with an injury this season. Now the Cowboys may be asking this unpolished rookie to bump back outside to tackle after spending the offseason repping at LG.

The Eagles host the Cowboys Week 6 in Philadelphia on Sunday Night Football.

UPDATE [9:01 a.m.]

The bad news continues for Smith and Dallas:

#Cowboys standout LT Tyron Smith actually suffered an avulsion fracture of the knee, meaning the hamstring tendon that sits at the back of the knee pulled off the bone and he needs surgery, sources say. If he’s back at all, it’ll be December. A tough loss.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 25, 2022