In 1989, Jerry Jones acquired the Cowboys. Before selecting Tyron Smith ninth overall in the 2011 draft, he had not selected an offensive lineman in the first round.
In the first round, Jones then selected guard/tackle Tyler Smith (24th, 2022), center Travis Frederick (31st, 2013), and guard Zack Martin (16th, 2014). All turned out to be wise draft choices.
The general consensus is that the Cowboys will select an offensive lineman in the first round of the draft next week, having lost starter center Tyler Biadasz and offensive lineman Tyron Smith to free agency this offseason.
Stephen Jones, the executive vice president of the Cowboys, does not share the team’s fans’ sense of urgency. Maybe he’s just being evasive.
According to Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News, Jones stated on 105.3 The Fan on Tuesday, “We just think you have to continue to evolve as an offensive line.” It is undoubtedly unfortunate to lose a player such as Tyron Smith, who is undoubtedly going to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. It appears that he will be donning a yellow jacket. However, Tyron has regrettably had to miss a lot of games, and eventually you have to make those difficult choices.
“It is unfortunate to lose Tyler as our center, as he has contributed much to the team.” But eventually, you have to make the difficult choice to let him leave for a different team so that, ideally, we can get a better center to take his place. Like Connor McGovern, we like the young men we’ve added throughout the years. After serving as a backup for three years, he took the lead. He went onto the field, performed admirably at guard, and was signed to a contract with Buffalo.
After that, Jones praised the offensive linemen who are still on the team and might potentially play a larger role now that Tyron Smith and Biadasz are gone.
Matt Waletzko, an offensive tackle selected in the fifth round of the 2022 draft, has only appeared in four games over the course of two seasons due to shoulder subluxation problems. Fifth-round pick Asim Richards, an offensive tackle/guard, saw action in eight games as a rookie, accounting for 39 offensive snaps and 39 special teams snaps. After signing as an undrafted free agent the previous season, T.J. Bass participated in all 17 games and started one at right guard and one at left guard. Originally signed by the Browns in 2022 as an undrafted free agent, Brock Hoffman started two games at center last season and has since played in eighteen more.
Hoffman and Bass might face off for the center position, or if the Cowboys move Tyler Smith to left tackle, Bass might assume the starting left guard position. Or Richards and Waletzko might battle it out for the left tackle position.
A lot is dependent on the Cowboys’ actions during the draft.
Jones stated, “We have young players that are on the rise, guys like Waletzko and Asim Richards.” “T.J. Bass had a great season for us the previous year. Since they haven’t played as much, their fans are obviously less familiar with them, but we think they can step up and play exceptionally well, just like Tyler did when he was a rookie center.
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