Cowboys trying to leverage Tyler Smith’s flexibility

It’s all about having options.

Will Tyler Smith start at left tackle or left guard for the Dallas Cowboys in September? That is one of the burning questions of the offseason. With the departure of Tyron Smith to the New York Jets, it is a decision that has been forced on the team. Most see it as a big one.

It may not matter as much as you think.

Let’s start with the fact that Tyler is a superb offensive lineman. He demonstrated his prowess at guard this past season with the team, earning his first Pro Bowl nod. But it has always been believed that there was a long-term plan when Dallas drafted him to eventually replace Tyron when the inevitable happened. That happened this year as Tyron got more money than Dallas was willing to give to go to the Jets. The wisdom of this move is still up for debate, but Tyler really enabled the team to let Tyron walk because they had a built-in option to fill the resultant hole.

Of course, that creates another hole at left guard. The best remaining option currently on the roster is T.J. Bass, and there are indications they might roll with him if they have to. However, the real plan might be to fortify the offensive line in the draft. If it isn’t, the questions about just what the heck they are doing multiply. This looks to be a draft with plentiful offensive line talent at both tackle and in the interior. With limited draft capital we have to expect them to address the line in the first three rounds. (Unfortunately, we are fairly certain a lot of help is not going to come via free agency, which now looks to be mostly about finding hole pluggers if the draft leaves some real shortfalls.)

That is how Tyler’s flexibility really helps them. They can take either a plug-and-play tackle and keep Tyler at guard, or go with an interior player while he moves outside. This adds a real element of best player available in the draft, always a good thing.

The decision to allow Tyler Biadasz to leave in free agency as well is also a big part of the calculations here. The left side of the line has to be rebuilt in any case. Currently, Brock Hoffman is projected to start at center. But he, too, can play either center or guard. That allows them to project a rookie at center, guard, or tackle. If they don’t take a tackle in the draft, they will move Smith out and pair the rookie with Hoffman or Bass, depending on who they have the most faith in. Or they can get their tackle and rely on Smith to help provide some stability for the players on either side of him.

There could be even more options with draft prospects who might have similar position flexibility to Smith. That would allow them to experiment in camp with the best combination to get the most out of their draft pick. It is possible they will not make the final call on how the players line up in the regular season until fairly late in training camp, although it could be determined much earlier. This makes the upcoming OTAs and minicamps even more interesting. Even with the limitations of those practices, they might gain enough data to know what the plan is going to be this fall.

There is no assurance the team is going to get it right, but the way Tyler Smith worked out is some reassurance. He already filled in for Tyron Smith at left tackle in his rookie year when Tyron was injured. He then moved inside last year and had an even better season. If they can find the right draft pick, which they have also been doing pretty good at outside of last season’s disappointing class, we can have some reasonable hope that the line is not going to be a major problem this year.

All this is because of the flexibility Tyler has. The Cowboys are cashing in on their investment in him. When he was picked, a lot of people doubted the selection. The results have shown they shouldn’t have. Now we can root for them to find a little draft gold again. And even if they don’t, the fallback of using Bass and Hoffman both this year, while not the best, is not a surefire recipe for failure, again thanks to having one confirmed hoss on the left side of the line.