The Cowboys likely won’t have one of their longest-tenured player on the roster next season.
Offensive tackle Tyron Smith is expected to hit free agency and not make a Dallas return in 2024, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Saturday.
However, ESPN reported if Smith does not develop a strong market, there still is a chance for him to return back to the Cowboys.
Smith, drafted ninth overall in the 2011 NFL Draft, has been a big piece of the Cowboys’ offensive line since he entered the league, going to eight Pro Bowls and earning two All-Pro nods.
The 33-year-old Smith has battled injuries the past few seasons, though, playing in just two games in 2020 after he underwent surgery for an issue in his neck before suiting up in only four contests in 2022 after dealing with a hamstring tear.
However, Smith had a huge bounce-back year for Dallas in 2023, earning a second-team All-Pro nod.
According to Pro Football Focus, he graded at an 83.3 — fourth in the NFL out of 81 tackles — after he allowed just one sack and took three penalties over the regular season.
Quarterback Dak Prescott thrived this past season, and Dallas as a whole ranked fifth in the NFL at 371.6 yards per game in 2023.
Owner Jerry Jones spoke highly of the tackle at the NFL combine on Friday.
“We’ll get in there in the right way and discuss his business and work out something that’s good for both of us,” Jones said, per the team’s website. “He’s had a great career. He’s a Hall of Fame player…I can’t tell you how good a shape I thought we were in with him as we got into the playoffs, and his health and where he was.
“Thought we were just where you want to be, and I gave a lot of credit to coach Mike McCarthy, him getting it pushed up there to where we had him just right as we went into the playoffs.”