After the disturbing news that guard Tyler Smith is going to miss at least the first month of the season with a thumb injury, the Dallas Cowboys made a couple of moves to shore up their offensive line depth, calling up a practice squad player and signing a former Pro Bowl player to add to the practice squad.
Meanwhile, an ESPN poll of scouts and executives came up with a coach of the year candidate that would have been laughed at a year ago, Brian Schottenheimer, in what can be seen as some validation for a smooth offseason.
Here is how Dallas is spending the final days before the games count.
Dallas shores up offensive line with Laken Tomlinson
A day after star
guard Tyler Smith was moved to the injured reserve, Dallas moved to bolster its offensive front in several ways. As expected, guard Nick Leverett was moved from the practice squad to the 53-man roster and will be the backup to new starter TJ Bass.
Then the Cowboys signed former first-round draft pick Laken Tomlinson to the practice squad and he’s intriguing. The 34-year-old was drafted in the first round of the 2015 draft and has started 162 career games, including seven last year with the Houston Texans.
He was a Pro Bowler in 2020.
Leverett was an undrafted free agent in 2020 out of Rice University, signed with Tampa Bay and was there mostly in a reserve capacity for three years, though he started 10 games with 16 total appearances in that time. He didn't get on the field until 2021 and stayed with the Buccaneers through the 2023 season.
He split 2024 between New England and Arizona and was on the Arizona practice squad last season when current Cowboys offensive coordinator Clayton Adams was there.
Brian Schottenheimer: Coach of the Year! (?)
ESPN is out with its annual poll of NFL executives and scouts, asking them to vote on award winners in all eight major categories, and the Cowboys made up a quarter of that list. One was the most expected, Caleb Downs as the favorite for defensive rookie of the year, and the other counts as a vote of confidence for the entire team: Brian Schottenheimer as coach of the year.
That award typically goes to the coach of the most-improved team that makes the playoffs, and after a 7-10 season, this suggests that the polled execs and scouts think Dallas is poised to win the NFC East.
Jeremy Fowler, writing the story on the poll, said, "This race featured no runaway favorite. Last year's prediction was Jim Harbaugh, who could be well-positioned to actually win it this year.
"But in a tight race, let's go with a bit of a wild card: Schottenheimer, who has acquitted himself well in Dallas behind the scenes and has most of what he needs to win.
"'I think Dak (Prescott) will have a big year; we know they can score; and the defense should be much improved,' an NFC scout said. 'If they stay healthy, they have a good chance to win the NFC East.'"
Of Downs, Fowler writes: "The Cowboys will play Downs primarily in the slot, where he can disrupt in the open field. 'He will play in the middle of the defense, so he will probably have some ball production and high tackle numbers', an AFC executive said. ''And if he helps turn around Dallas' defense, he'll be looked at as a catalyst.'
"The last defensive back to win DROY was Sauce Gardner in 2022, when he recorded two interceptions and 20 pass deflections. Ball production is a must to win this award."
As for the other awards, Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow is tabbed to win MVP, Detroit tailback Jahmyr Gibbs is picked for offensive player of the year, Houston edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. for defensive player of the year, Seattle tailback Jadarian Price for offensive rookie of the year, Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes for defensive player of the year, and Green Bay Packers receiver Matthew Golden as breakout player of the year.
Von Miller: ‘The smile has come back’
Dallas’ biggest acquisition of August was the addition of future Hall of Fame edge rusher Von Miller, who not only boosts their pass rush but also provides mentorship to young players on the team like Malachi Lawrence and Jaishawn Barham.
And after a summer of lobbying to come to Dallas, he is supremely happy. He also thinks he’ll be up to speed and able to contribute quickly.
”I've been all over, so they've done a really good job of ramping me up here, and that's the feeling that you want to have," Miller told DallasCowboys.com. "You want to have that feeling, like, 'Hey, I'm in shape. I can do a little bit more.' That means we're doing something right.
"You don't want it to be on the opposite side, where I'm gassed and thinking like, 'I need to take a couple plays off.' They've been doing a really good job of getting me acclimated, not that I need time to get acclimated, but it's always good to be safe, and they've done an incredible job of getting me ready to play."
He is also still in a bit of awe about being a Cowboy.
”The smile has come back, you know?” Miller told DallasCowboys.com. “I've always loved playing football. I've been able to play for some amazing teams, with amazing quarterbacks and amazing coaches. But it's just something different about being here. ... Coming here to The Star and seeing this amazing facility, and going to the stadium, I am glad we had that preseason game because I was in awe.
"I've played on the other side, but I haven't been on this side wearing white jerseys and playing for the good guys. I needed that acclimation period to just kind of get all my (starstruck) out. It's still times where I'm just in awe and starstruck, but every day it kind of wears off a little bit and I settle into being a Dallas Cowboy. I'm sure a lot of kids wish that, and I am living a dream."
Dallas Cowboys transactions
Here is a list of Dallas Cowboys transactions this month.
Bret Bloomquist can be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Dallas Cowboys add former Pro Bowl offensive lineman to practice squad
