One of the Cowboys’ biggest storylines yet to unfold this offseason will be what happens at the vitally important left tackle position. While the 29th overall pick in 2024’s draft was added with the expectation that he would be a set-it-and-forget-it solution in the role, the prospect Dallas took exactly 204 picks later that same year is still very much in the mix.
Tyler Guyton has made 21 starts since coming out of Oklahoma as a first-rounder, but he finds himself locked in a position battle with seventh-round man Nate Thomas. And Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer is making it clear that the matter is currently being decided, every single day.
“We’re going to make Tyler earn it,” Schottenheimer told reporters during a Thursday press conference at The Star. “Tyler and Nate Thomas right now are competing to start at left tackle. Why? Because we think that that’s going to get the best out of Tyler Guyton. And the best out of Nate Thomas.”
Guyton has struggled just to stay on the field already in his young career. Whether due to injuries or quality of play (and frequently both), Thomas took over for Guyton, to the tune of four starts last season. Additionally, the club used a fourth-round selection this spring on Drew Shelton, a lineman out of Penn State who is considered a swing tackle option.
The message being sent to Guyton is crystal-clear to anyone paying attention.
“Tyler’s biggest thing is: the consistency has not been there,” Schottenheimer explained. “Very talented, maybe one of the most athletic big men I’ve ever been around, with his ability to kick-slide, punch, move, run. But there’s got to be more consistency, and that’s been the challenge that he’s been working extremely, extremely hard on.”
Whether the left tackle job is still tacitly Guyton’s to lose or there’s a starting spot genuinely up for grabs can be debated. Talk of an “open competition” could be just the latest motivational tactic from the staff as they try to coax a little more out of a highly-touted third-year player who has yet to make the jump.
But the battle between Guyton and Thomas will be something for fans to keep an eye on this summer.
Because Schottenheimer certainly is.
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys HC says former 1st-round pick has to compete with 7th rounder to start
Reporting by Todd Brock, Cowboys Wire / Cowboys Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Todd Brock, Cowboys Wire | USA TODAY Network
