Veteran offensive lineman wants to remain with Cowboys

Smith is aiming to play one more season as a Cowboy, Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News reports. 

The 33-year-old is a pending free agent (although the restructured pact he agreed to last March will leave the team with a $6M dead cap charge in 2024 even if he departs). 

Smith’s desire to remain in place will lead to an interesting decision on the team’s part given his injury history.

The 2010s All-Decade member has not played a full season since 2015. Several ailments have led to missed time since then, including those that limited him to a combined total of six games in 2020 and 2022. 

Smith rebounded this past year by seeing the field for 13 games, all of which came at his familiar left tackle spot. That came after offseason indications pointed to the eight-time Pro Bowler remaining at right tackle, where he played upon his return to the lineup in 2022.

Dallas used a first-round pick on Tyler Smith in 2022 to use him at guard before succeeding Tyron Smith on the blindside. The latter’s torn hamstring accelerated that plan, but his return to pre-injury form in 2023 allowed Tyler Smith to slide back inside. 

Tyron Smith graded out as PFF’s fourth-best offensive tackle last season, in large part due to a league-best mark of 89.3 in pass protection.

Given his performance, the two-time All-Pro could be a logical candidate for a much shorter pact than the eight-year one he inked in 2014. 

On the other hand, the Cowboys need to prepare a plan to transition to younger options concerning Smith and right guard Zack Martin. The latter is under contract for one more year with a guaranteed salary of $18M and a $28.5M cap hit. 

Dallas also has starting center Tyler Biadasz set to hit free agency, so retaining him would use up resources that could otherwise be given to Smith. With the Cowboys or another team, the latter nevertheless intends to play in 2024.