One of the many justifications Dallas Cowboys overlord Jerry Jones offered when explaining the Micah Parsons trade was the notion that he could retain multiple players with the money that would have been allocated to the star pass rusher. To Jones' credit, he has put his money where his mouth is.
Just a few days after agreeing to an extension with cornerback DaRon Bland that will keep him as a cornerstone of the Dallas defense, Jones decided to lock up guard Tyler Smith. Dak Prescott's top pass protector has now been locked in for the future after agreeing to a four-year contract extension.
Smith's four-year deal for $96 million will pay him $24 million per season, passing Trey Smith's contract in Kansas City and making him the highest-paid guard in NFL history. Smith's status as one of the best guards in football made this decision a complete no-brainer.
Cowboys agree to four-year extension with left guard Tyler Smith
There was a fair degree of skepticism around the Cowboys' decision to draft a player from Tulsa at No. 24 overall in the 2022 NFL Draft and immediately convert the college tackle to guard, but that decision has proven to be a stroke of genius.
Over the last three seasons, Smith has been named a Pro Bowler twice and snuck his way onto the 2023 All-Pro team via a second-team nomination. Very few linemen in the NFC can claim to be as equally adpet as Smith when it comes to being equally adept as a run blocker and pass blocker.
With Tyler Guyton struggling since making his transition to the NFL and rookie Tyler Booker likely to go through some rookie growing pains in his first season, Smith is an even more important member of the offensive line who can't afford to have a down year.
While the Cowboys could have kept Smith and Parsons together if they really wanted to, it's hard to complain too much about a tremendous internal development success story getting compensated like an elite player. For the rest of his prime, Smith will have a star on the side of his helmet.