With the California portion of training camp over and two preseason games now in the rearview mirror, we have much more clarity about where things currently stand depth wise at each position for the Dallas Cowboys. For the most part things look pretty encouraging throughout the roster, however, there are a few concerns that need to be addressed. One is at offensive tackle.
From top to bottom, the Cowboys can’t be 100% confident with their current depth at the OT position. Whether it’s the projected
starters Tyler Guyton and Terence Steele or the questionable depth behind them, there’s not a single OT they can 100% depend upon as a full-time starter this year. Every single player at the position can be red flagged for one reason or another and could spell trouble this season.
A lot is riding on Guyton and Steele as the full-time starter’s this year. The latter has held down the RT position for a few years now, but has never truly been challenged for the starting job. The Cowboys love his ability as a run blocker, but his pass protection leaves much to be desired, so much so, he’s become somewhat of a liability.
As for Guyton, his inability to remain healthy for an entire season and his lack of consistency are pretty significant red flags right now. There’s hope he will be able to overcome these two issues this year, however, without a crystal ball there’s no way of telling whether that’s true or not. That means a dependable swing tackle is needed.
Nate Thomas is a projected swing tackle right now. He was supposed to be in a head-to-head battle with Guyton for the starting LT job, but never materialized as a serious contender. Instead, he seemed to regress somewhat and may no longer be a dependable option even as a backup. That would be a huge gut punch.
Outside of those top three, no other tackle has shown to be starter material yet, or even an injury fill-in for that matter. Ajani Cornelius shows some promise in his second-year, but he may be better on the inside at the guard then at tackle. And so far, this year’s fourth-round pick Drew Shelton looks like a developmental project.
Things are less than ideal right now at OT for the Dallas Cowboys. This is a position that could definitely be upgraded from a depth standpoint. The question is how do they go about doing that considering many teams around the league are probably facing the same problem.
As far as available free agents are concerned, the options are pretty slim. Considering his starting experience with the Detroit Lions, Taylor Decker is probably the best option.
Other than Decker, Jonah Williams could make some sense. He and Klayton Adams have a history with one another due to their short time together with the Arizona Cardinals. He’s a former first-round pick who has played both LT and RT. He could be an upgrade over Nate Thomas as a swing tackle.
The fact the Cowboys haven’t shown any interest in either as of yet could be telling though. They may be willing to roll the dice with their current depth at the position, or could possibly have a trade in mind to upgrade things. Either way, they’d be wise to monitor the veteran OT market closely, especially around cutdown day.
How much confidence do you have in the Cowboys offensive tackle situation?
