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The Dallas Cowboys have been able to score a lot of points on offense so far this season, but a lot of this is due to falling behind early in games and having to try and catch up. There are a number of reasons for why the Cowboys have trailed opponents so much this season and while most of them lie on the defensive side of the ball, the reality is that the offense is turning the ball over too much. Fumbles and interceptions are things that people generally place responsibility for on the hands of the carrier or quarterback, but there are hidden things that play a role in them.
As an example consider Dak Prescott’s fumble against the Cleveland Browns last week. Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett stormed past rookie undrafted free agent Terence Steele and was able to get to Prescott and knock the ball loose.
Steele was in the game because La’el Collins is set to miss the entire year with a hip issue. The Cowboys’ other tackle, Tyron Smith, has played in half of the season’s four games so far, but it is possible that the team could be without him for the rest of the season. Yes, seriously.
Tyron Smith is gathering medical opinions on his neck after a setback, and one option is for the Cowboys to shut him down for the entire season
Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy caused fans to look over towards the emergency button behind the glass pane when he said on Thursday that Tyron Smith is not as far along today as he was at this time last week. You obviously don’t want to hear that.
Smith has been battling a neck injury since the season opener on the road against the Los Angeles Rams. He missed the following two games against the Atlanta Falcons and Seattle Seahawks before returning last week against Cleveland. According to a report from NFL Network, Smith suffered a setback and is gathering medical opinions on his situation. One option is for the Cowboys to shut him down for the remainder of the season.
#Cowboys LT Tyron Smith is gathering medical opinions on his neck after a setback, and one option being considered is shutting down for the season, sources tell me and @SlaterNFL. No final decision made on Smith, who hasn’t practiced this week, but his status is up in the air.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) October 8, 2020
This news is hardly ideal at any point in time, but the Cowboys are dealing with a number of injuries all over their team and especially along the offensive line. La’el Collins’ situation has been noted, there’s this with Tyron Smith, and let’s not forget that starting center Joe Looney is expected to miss 2-3 weeks with a sprained MCL.
The Cowboys have second-year undrafted free agent tackle Brandon Knight whom they started in place of Smith in Weeks 2 and 3, but while he is someone who can theoretically handle himself in the NFL it’s finding a second tackle beyond him that is the challenge. Earlier this week Dallas signed Greg Senat to the 53-man roster on top of adding William Sweet to the practice squad amid a handful of roster moves. Cam Erving is also eligible to return from injured reserve himself whenever he is ready from a health standpoint.
2020 is Tyron Smith’s 10th year in the NFL and he has battled injuries off and on for the last five or so years. Consider that Dak Prescott has never played an entire season with Tyron Smith for perspective on how long things like his back have been an issue.
Priority number one for Tyron Smith is to get as healthy as he can. Obviously this news is not encouraging from an on-the-field perspective, we will keep you updated here at BTB as more information becomes available.