It wasn't necessarily a surprise when Brian Schottenheimer announced a left tackle competition between Tyler Guyton, Nate Thomas, and fourth-round pick Drew Shelton.
Through two seasons, the Dallas Cowboys have not gotten a worthwhile return on investment on Guyton, whom they drafted No. 29 overall in 2024. While raw, the hope was he'd develop into a bookend left tackle, but we're seemingly still a ways away from that.
Despite that, it's looking more and more like the competition was created to light a fire under Guyton, not necessarily because his grip on the job was slipping. Cowboys reporter Jon Machota of The Athletic would be stunned if Guyton doesn't come out on top.
"It’s a competition between Tyler Guyton and Nate Thomas, but Guyton is the clear favorite," Machota wrote. "He was the one running with the first-team through minicamp practices. As long as he can stay healthy, Guyton should hold down that spot in his third season."
Tyler Guyton may win the Cowboys' left tackle battle in a landslide
Guyton has been Dallas' starting left tackle for two seasons despite inconsistent play and durability concerns, so it's not exactly surprising that there's a gap between him and Thomas and Shelton.
Perhaps he'd be standing on shakier ground if the Cowboys had a stronger alternative, but as Machota noted, the job is Guyton's to lose as long as he stays healthy.
The former first-round pick missed only two games as a rookie, but shaky blocking and a recurring penalty problem overshadowed much of his season. He committed a whopping 18 penalties, including 12 in pass protection, and ranked 50th among tackles with a 96.0 pass-blocking efficiency, per Pro Football Focus advanced stats.
Guyton's second year was arguably much worse, as he missed all of training camp with a knee injury. That missed practice time proved crucial, as Guyton once again struggled, allowing more pressures (31) than Year 1 despite playing fewer snaps.
Injuries only compounded the problem. A concussion cost him a game in the middle of the year, and he was later placed on season-ending injured reserve with a high ankle sprain, shelving him for the final seven games.
Guyton hasn't been unplayable when healthy. But whether it be a pre-snap penalty or a lousy rep in pass pro, he's developed a knack for derailing promising drives. And yet, Thomas and Shelton may not even make him sweat in Oxnard.
That makes us wonder if left guard Tyler Smith, who started the final three games of last season at left tackle, is the Cowboys' true contingency plan if Guyton struggles or gets hurt.
Of course, moving Smith back outside would reopen one of the team's most polarizing discourses, so let's hope Machota's prediction holds and Guyton runs away with the starting job.
It's pretty obvious that's how this ends if Guyton stays upright.
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