Cowboys select OT Tyler Smith at No. 24 after missing rumored OL targets

The Dallas Cowboys had several names that were commonly mocked to the team this offseason. Sadly, most of them were off the board well before the Cowboys were on the board at 24th overall. Chris Olave went to the Saints at 11th overall, Kenyon Green went to the Texans at 15th overall, Zion Johnson went to the Chargers at 17th overall, and Treylon Burks went to the Titans at 18th overall. All of these names were favorites for Dallas.

In the end, the Cowboys would end up selecting Tulsa offensive tackle Tyler Smith, a man who was not on their list of 30 pre-draft prospect visits. Smith certainly isn’t the most exciting name, but he does fill a pressing need on the offensive line after the Cowboys lost both Connor Williams and La’el Collins this offseason. Plus, both the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles scored big with major defensive prospects Kayvon Thibodeaux and Jordan Davis.

Oddly enough, it seems like ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. may have known something we didn’t. In his final mock draft that came out this morning, Kiper selected Smith for the Cowboys, which resulted in a major uproar from Dallas fans. The Tulsa product was projected to go in the second round by almost all NFL analysts. In other words, the Cowboys passed on first-round worthy offensive and defensive talent to take Smith.

The OT is a 6-4, 324-pound redshirt sophomore who just turned 21 years old. Smith is a Fort Worth, Texas, native who started two of his three years at Tulsa at left tackle. He had 23 starts in his three seasons and earned All-AAC nods in 2020 and 2021.

The Dallas Cowboys select Tulsa OT Tyler Smith at 24th overall after losing out on several other offensive line favorites

Smith exclusively played left tackle in college, but he could be used as a flex player thanks to his size and strength. He will likely come in to compete for a starting tackle position, but adding this raw player could be a good idea, given current Cowboys tackle Tyron Smith is already 31 years old.

Offensive line coach Joe Philbin is probably excited to get a guy in the building who has immense strength. In his film, Smith is often throwing strong pass rushers to the ground, which the Cowboys certainly need. He has an aggressive and violent style of play and excels in run blocking. Smith will need to work on honing down his strength in the most effective way as he gets used to being in the NFL.

Another interesting fact about the Tulsa OT is that his medical evaluations were very important. When he was younger, he overcame Blount’s disease, which affected the growth plates around his knees. Smith was bowlegged until high school. From there, he had to have his legs put in cages. Doctors re-broke his legs and had to let the reheal. Thankfully, teams deemed him healthy enough to compete.

At the end of the day, Smith will hopefully help a struggling offensive line. But it certainly feels confusing to take someone who should have been a second-day pick ahead of names like Tyler Linderbaum, George Karlaftis, and Devin Lloyd.