Cowboys news: The injury bug has once again hit Tyron Smith

Dallas Cowboys left tackle Tyron Smith left practice on Wednesday with an apparent injury - RJ Ochoa, Blogging The Boys

The swing tackle dilemma may be close.

The Dallas Cowboys held their final practice of training camp on Wednesday, and will face the Seattle Seahawks in their preseason finale on Saturday night before making all final 53-man roster decisions that are due next Tuesday. Unfortunately, Wednesday’s practice featured a bit of bad news as left tackle Tyron Smith walked off of the field with an apparent injury.

Tyron Smith has missed time in each of the last six seasons which is why so many people have advocated for the team to place a larger emphasis on finding a legitimate swing tackle given Josh Ball’s struggles to this point. Rookie Matt Waletzko practiced for the first time in almost a month on Tuesday and was initially expected to compete with Ball for the swing tackle spot.

Before Wednesday’s practice head coach Mike McCarthy said that McGovern was ahead of rookie Tyler Smith as far as the left guard position is concerned. This may just be coach speak for right now, but on the subject of Tyler Smith he has not received any legitimate work at left tackle. There are those who believe he could be a swing tackle of sorts if and when Tyron is lost for some time, but if he isn’t properly preparing then things will be more difficult.

Michael Gallup to break camp on 53-man roster, says Dallas Cowboys’ Jerry Jones - Todd Archer, ESPN

In positive injury news, Gallup could be returning to action a little sooner than expected.

Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Michael Gallup will open the season on the 53-man roster, according to owner and general manager Jerry Jones.

“We just don’t want to do anything that would put him in some kind of category that would limit us from getting him in the first game,” Jones said before Wednesday’s practice.

Gallup, who tore the ACL in his left knee in January and had surgery in February, already has said he would not be able to play in the Sept. 11 opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, calling it “not realistic” last month. But not being placed on PUP would allow him to return later in the month.

He currently is on the active/physically unable to perform list, and if the Cowboys move him to reserve/PUP at the final cuts next week, he would be forced to miss the first four games.

Cowboys Sitting Starters vs Seattle, QB Will Grier to Play Heavily - Jess Haynie, Inside The Star

The battle for the backup quarterback job behind Dak Prescott should be settled in the preseason finale.

The Dallas Cowboys will continue to protect their starters in the preseason, announcing yesterday that most will not suit for Friday’s game against Seattle. But we can expect to see a lot of backup QB candidate Will Grier, who will reportedly get the majority of the snaps versus the Seahawks.

Head Coach Mike McCarthy made the team’s plans clear in a media session yesterday. He said the first-team offense and defense would get a lot of work in practice this week but that Friday night would be more for evaluating the backups and position battles throughout the roster.

Even diehard fans have to be a little disappointed that we won’t see Micah Parsons, Dak Prescott, and other stars at all during the preseason. But unlike the casuals, we can find some comfort in our own glimpses of the guys fighting for their spots on the depth chart or to even make the 53-man roster.

Few of those contenders have more intrigue right now than Will Grier. After outclassing Cooper Rush in last week’s game in Los Angeles, Grier will supposedly get all the work he can handle this Friday as Dallas tries to decide who their backup QB will be in 2022.

Why was Tyler Smith absent from Tuesday’s Cowboys practice? - Lauren Barash, The Landry Hat

It appears that Tyler Smith dodged a serious injury at a time when his services will be counted on.

The last week of the preseason is here and the Dallas Cowboys are back in Texas for their final week of practice and third game against the Seattle Seahawks. Tuesday night, the Cowboys took the field in front of fans at Ford Center at The Star.

However, there was one thing that sparked concern. When the practice began, reporters noticed that first-round pick Tyler Smith was not in pads and not participating. At first, people speculated that maybe the team was just giving the rookie rest since he has taken a lot of snaps and contact so far in the preseason joint practices and games.

Patrik Walker, a writer for DallasCowboys.com, asked Mike McCarthy about Smith’s absence. The head coach made sure to emphasize that it was a minor issue and made it seem like the rookie was fine, but can we trust the Cowboys?

For a rookie who is still technically battling with Connor McGovern (although the role is likely Smith’s) for the starting spot at left guard, sitting out practices in the final week of preseason isn’t ideal. Hopefully, Smith will be back in practice tonight or we will at least get more answers as to what is going on if he’s not.

Have Cowboys picked a kicker? Will starters play in preseason finale? - Davids Helman, Fox Sports

Brett Maher appears to have the kicker job... for the moment.

The Cowboys’ head coach is hoping to get two heavy workloads in for his starters this week at The Star, as the team transitions training camp to its lavish indoor facility. If all goes well, it sounds like a good bet they won’t do much more in Friday’s preseason finale against Seattle.

The first two games were the peak of preseason, if you need a refresher. A handful of starters got into the action early on. But by and large, the 17-7 loss to Denver and the 32-18 win over the L.A. Chargers were about showcasing rookies and other, younger players.

It feels anti-climactic, but the kicker competition might have ended on Tuesday. The Cowboys needed to make five cuts, per NFL rules, to reach the 80-man roster limit. Among those five cuts was Lirim Hajrullahu — who, up until that time, had been in a camp-long battle to be the team’s kicker. The other four cuts were linebacker Christian Sam, tight end Jeremy Sprinkle, wide receiver Jaquarii Roberson and cornerback Quandre Mosely.

Sprinkle’s name is noteworthy, but the decision to release Hajrullahu is the definite headliner. With him out the door, the job seems to belong to Brett Maher, who just joined the roster two weeks ago after struggling rookie Jonathan Garibay was released.

“Brett, we just really trusted his numbers,” McCarthy said. “This 80 cut is difficult. Factor in playing in this last game, the other factors, we just felt Brett was in front and give him this opportunity to be the kicker, be the guy in preseason [game] three.”

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