The Dallas Cowboys had a chance to establish themselves as a contender coming out of Week 8, facing the Broncos in Denver. While this wasn’t the best team they’ll face all year, playing in Mile High altitude is always a challenge. But the Cowboys came up short on Sunday. Way short. And with a record of 3-4-1, their season feels like it’s starting to slip away.
There weren’t a lot of positives to take away from that game, as the offense had arguably its worst outing of the year. The defense gave up 44 points, and it somehow could have been worse. But there was one major bright spot that came out of Sunday’s action, and that was the play of Tyler Booker, the first-round pick from Alabama.
Cowboys rookie Tyler Booker was dominant vs. the Broncos
Since returning from his ankle injury, Booker has been fantastic for the Cowboys at right guard. T.J. Bass did a really nice job of holding down that spot after Booker went down with his high-ankle injury, but it doesn’t take an expert scout to see why Booker was a first-round pick and why Bass was not.
Booker allowed just two pressures on 46 pass-blocking snaps against the Broncos, but it was his work in the run game that really stood out. According to Pro Football Focus, he was the highest-graded rookie offensive lineman (83.2) in Week 8 by a good margin. Here is a snippet of what the site had to say about the No. 12 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
"It’s been an up-and-down start to the rookie first-rounder’s career, but Booker was stellar in the Cowboys’ blowout loss to the Broncos against what has proven to be a very opportunistic defensive line. Booker’s 86.3 PFF run-blocking grade led all rookie guards, carrying a 77.0-plus mark on both inside zone and power run plays. In all, he tallied a whopping eight positively-graded run blocks."
There are still some snaps where quickness can give him trouble in pass protection, and he really needs to work on handling stunts more effectively. However, Booker’s strength and power in the run game are what make him such a unique player. At only 21, Booker possesses NFL strength that is usually reserved for players in their late 20s and early 30s.
Booker is currently PFF's No. 24-ranked guard after eight games with an overall grade of 67.2. That is ahead of Tyler Smith, who comes in at No. 34 in their rankings. But over the last two weeks, Booker has had the 11th-best run blocking grade (69.2), and it's clear that he is going to continue to move up the rankings as the season progresses.
The Cowboys have to be thrilled with the production that they have gotten from Booker in the last two games, and are hoping that with Cooper Beebe expected to return to the lineup in Week 9, the interior offensive line can be the strength of the team moving forward. We can argue about the positional value of drafting a guard at No. 12, but it does seem like the Cowboys found themselves a good player with an incredibly high ceiling.
If Booker can continue his upward trajectory and maintain this level of play, there is no reason why he can’t be every bit as good as Tyler Smith. And that is saying something. So far, so good for the former Alabama star.