Stephen Jones Puts Blame on Tyron Smith for Cowboys Exit
Dallas Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones spoke at length about Tyron Smith's departure on Tuesday.
By Jovan Alford
The Dallas Cowboys have had a disappointing offseason as they didn’t make any huge moves in free agency and saw countless veteran players leave in Dallas to sign with other teams.
Among the players who left Dallas were Tony Pollard, Tyler Biadasz, Dorace Armstrong, and Tyron Smith. Smith was one of the biggest losses as he’s been protecting Dak Prescott’s blind side for many years.
When healthy, Smith is one of the best left tackles in the league and could someday become a Hall of Famer. That said, the veteran offensive lineman’s health played a part in the Cowboys’ decision to keep him, or in this case, let him go.
Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones went on 105.3 The Fan on Tuesday and spoke at length about Smith and Biadasz leaving this offseason.
“We just think you have to continue to evolve as an offensive line. Certainly, you hate to lose a player like Tyron Smith, who's in my opinion going to be a Hall of Famer, Jones said (h/t Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News). “I think he's going to be wearing a yellow jacket. But at the same time, unfortunately, Tyron's had to miss a lot of games, and at some point, you have to make those tough decisions.”
Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones to @1053thefan on starting LT Tyron Smith and C Tyler Biadasz departing in free agency: "We just think you have to continue to evolve as an offensive line. Certainly, you hate to lose a player like Tyron Smith, who's in my opinion going to be a Hall of…
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) April 16, 2024
The 33-year-old offensive lineman played in 13 games last season, which is the most games he played since 2019. However, Smith missed four games because of multiple injuries but still had an 89.1 percent pass-block win rate and a 78.8 percent run-block win rate.
Before last season, Smith only played in 15 total games in 2022 and ‘21 because of debilitating injuries. Therefore, Jones is right about how the team has to make hard decisions, but it's not easy to replace a future Hall of Famer on the offensive line.
The Cowboys’ projected starting left tackle is Tyler Smith, who they drafted with the 22nd overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. However, some mock drafts believe Dallas could take an offensive lineman at No. 24 overall.
Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see how the Cowboys fare without Smith and if the veteran offensive tackle can stay healthy with the New York Jets this season.
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