Dallas Cowboys: Time to Move La’el Collins to Right Tackle

Both the Dallas Cowboys and La’el Collins may be best served with a switch from offensive guard to right tackle this spring.

The Dallas Cowboys are strong on the offensive line. Named the NFL’s Offensive Line of the Year, “strong” may even be a bit of an understatement. Armed with three All-Pros all under the age of 27, the needle is still pointed up. That’s got to be scary to the rest of the league.

Tyron Smith (LT), Travis Frederick (C), and Zack Martin (G) are all in the long-term plans of the Cowboys. Smith and Frederick have already been given contract extensions and Martin’s is in the works. It’s the other 2/5 of the line that faces the unknown future.

And that’s where La’el Collins comes in.

Third year pro, La’el Collins, came to the Dallas Cowboys under unique circumstances. The projected 1^st round draft pick was unofficially linked to a murder only days before the draft. Since there wasn’t enough time for the police to publicly clear Collins, he went undrafted.

La’el Collins doesn’t have a future with the Dallas Cowboys playing the guard position.

Seeing that Dallas had already assembled a blue-chip offensive line, Collins joined the Cowboys for a chance to prove his worth and enter free agency two seasons early. The savvy move would give him an opportunity to shine alongside the best, and let him recoup lost pay by entering free agency before most of his draft class.

As we know, the Dallas Cowboys have been using La’el Collins as a guard the past two seasons. With Tyron Smith locking down the left tackle and cagey veteran Doug Free on the right side, guard was the easiest position for immediate playing time.

Now, two years later and entering the last year on his 3-year deal, the time to move to tackle may be now.

Doug Free’s Future

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The incumbent starter, Doug Free, is currently in the last year of his deal. It’s safe to say Free, 33, will not be re-signed. Over the hill already and costing $7.5M in 2017, it’s not even guaranteed he’ll play this season.

This is hardly groundbreaking news here, either. The Dallas Cowboys have been preparing for this for years. In fact, La’el Collins was signed in the first place as a potential option to Free.

Collins, a former left tackle, was profiled as an NFL right tackle. The Cowboys even played him there when they initially signed him. Need and opportunity obviously moved him to guard but that doesn’t mean anyone (not him or the Cowboys) gave up on the dream of RT.

La’el Collins’ Future

La’el Collins doesn’t have a future with the Dallas Cowboys playing the guard position. Already paying top dollar to three offensive linemen, the Cowboys cannot afford to throw a pricey second contract at the guard position. Especially not with the much more important right tackle vacancy looming.

Tackles are traditionally more important than guards. They face off against edge rushers, operate in more space, and hold greater overall responsibility. As such, offensive tackles traditionally cost more. Guards, on the other hand, are replaceable parts. They are the most inexpensive spots to fill on the offensive line and unless you have a player like Zack Martin, you don’t usually break the bank to keep them.

The Dallas Cowboys simply cannot afford to pay big money to a right tackle AND a guard in 2018. They need go cheap somewhere and smart money says that’s the guard.

This isn’t like the Cowboys moving Larry Allen to tackle for a year, either. Allen was among the best in the game at guard and only pretty good at tackle. They lost too much of their dominance in that move. La’el flashed at guard but he was far from great. In fact, Ronald Leary (2017 departing free agent) was considerably better in his relief.

No, this is moving a still-developing player to a position that requires grooming – a position that holds greater importance—a position that has a future on the Dallas Cowboys.

If the Dallas Cowboys want to re-sign La’el Collins, they will need to do so at the tackle position. Even if Doug Free plays this year, the Cowboys must find out if Collins can play RT. If that means splitting snaps between guard and tackle in preseason, then so be it.

Next: What the Cowboys Need in a No.2 Receiver

The decisions the Dallas Cowboys make today will greatly impact what they can do tomorrow. The upcoming draft is thin at tackle so finding the answer there seems like a longshot. La’el Collins moving to right tackle seems like the wise move for both the Cowboys and the player.

And yeah, I didn’t mention Chaz Green for a reason.

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