The 10 best offensive linemen in the history of the Dallas Cowboys

If there's any team in the NFL that understands the importance of an offensive line, it's the Dallas Cowboys. No team over the last 15 years has a better track record than the Cowboys when it comes to drafting offensive linemen in the first round.

2022 first-round pick Tyler Smith is shaping up to be Dallas' next success story in that regard. Fresh off going to his first Pro Bowl in year two and being named a Second-Team All-Pro, Smith has established himself as one of the game's elite guards. He'll look to stack Pro Bowls and All-Pros to hopefully climb the list of great Cowboys offensive linemen.

Criteria for selection:

The top 10 offensive linemen in Dallas Cowboys history

Offensive line is a difficult position to rank as they don't have the counting stats that apply to most positions. Today's linemen have the benefit of advanced metrics such as pressure rate, sacks allowed, blocking grade and QB hits, but that wasn't available until shortly after the turn of the century.

With that, we will compare the careers of the most decorated blockers in Cowboys history. All-Pro nods, Pro Bowls and Super Bowl wins will all be considered, but this won't be a blind ranking of the players with the most honors.

10. Travis Frederick

Frederick's career sadly was cut short by Guillain–Barré syndrome, which is a neurological disorder that causes nerve damage and muscle weakness. Frederick missed the entire 2018 season with the illness but bounced back to make the Pro Bowl in 2019 before he retired that offseason.

A first-round pick in 2013 out of Wisconsin, Frederick only played six seasons but he's the most dominant center in Cowboys history. He went to four straight Pro Bowls starting in 2014 and was named an All-Pro three straight years from 2014 to 2016.

9. Flozell Adams

Adams was drafted by the Cowboys in 1998 after the conclusion of the dynasty. Make no mistake, though, Adams had the talent and tenacity to fit on the "Great Wall of Dallas." A second-round pick, Adams stared all 16 games in an unprecedented 11 of his 12 seasons with the Cowboys. The remarkable durability helped him rank 15th in team history with 182 games played.

He didn't make his first Pro Bowl until his sixth season, but he rattled off five in a span of six years running from 2003 to 2008. The Cowboys didn't do much winning after the dynasty ended, but Adams brought stability to the left tackle position for over a decade.

8. Ralph Neely

One of the foundational pieces of Tom Landry's Cowboys, Neely played right and left tackle over his 13-year career. A lifetime Cowboy, Neely made the NFL's All-Rookie Team in 1965. He only made two Pro Bowls but he was a four-time All-Pro. He was a First-Team All-Pro three straight seasons spanning 1967-69.

Neely was a part of both of Landry's Super Bowl-winning teams and was selected to the All-Decade Team of the 1960s. He has not been selected for the Cowboys' Ring of Honor or the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

7. Erik Williams

The "what if" question with Williams is a difficult conversation as he sustained major injuries in a 1994 car accident that caused him to miss the rest of the season. Williams was coming off an All-Pro season in 1993 at right tackle. He reclaimed his starting job in 1995 and defied the odds to make another All-Pro Team in 1996.

In 1992, Williams became the first OL in Cowboys history to be named NFC Offensive Player of the Year after he held the unblockable Reggie White without a sack in the team's win over the Eagles.

Williams started 133 games over 10 seasons with Dallas. He made four Pro Bowls in total and was crucial to three Super Bowl wins in the '90s. He could've gone down as the greatest linemen in Cowboys history if not for the accident, but his career was more than good enough crack enough the top 10.

6. John Niland

Niland, Rayfield Wright and Ralph Neely formed one of the most formidable offensive lines in the league during the 1960s and '70s. Perhaps the second-best left guard in Cowboys history behind the late, great Larry Allen, Niland made six straight Pro Bowls spanning 1968-73. That dominant run included three First-Team All-Pro nods in 1969, 1971 and 1972.

Niland played a vital role in Dallas' first-ever Super Bowl in 1971. He's one of four offensive linemen in franchise history with six Pro Bowl appearances.

5. Tyron Smith

Smith is arguably the best left tackle of his generation. Only Trent Williams can be mentioned in the same breath as Smith when discussing the best LTs of the 2010s. He made seven consecutive Pro Bowls spanning 2013-2019, including four All-Pro nods (two First-Teams).

That stretch alone might have earned Smith a bust in Canton. Injuries unfortunately have upended Smith's last four seasons, but he turned back the clock in 2023 and was a Second-Team All-Pro. He's allowed the second-lowest pressure rate in true pass sets over the last decade. It's no surprise Smith is a member of the All-Decade Team of the 2010s.

It's a shame that Smith won't be a lifetime Cowboy and never won a Super Bowl in Dallas, but it's a only a matter of time until he's in the Ring of Honor and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

4. Nate Newton

Newton was a foundational piece of the Cowboys' offensive line for 11 seasons spanning the mid-1980s and 1990s. He didn't make his first Pro Bowl until his sixth season in 1992, which marked Dallas' first of three Super Bowl wins in the '90s.

Newton earned five straight Pro Bowls from 1992-96 and made another in 1998. He was a First-Team All-Pro in 1994 and 1996. Only Larry Allen, Zack Martin and Tyron Smith have more Pro Bowl appearances than Newton's six. He played 13 seasons in Dallas and is now the most egregious omission from the Cowboys' Ring of Honor after Jimmy Johnson was inducted this past season.

3. Zack Martin

Martin is one of the best blocking guards in NFL history. Period. There's a number of statistics and accolades that encapsulate Martin's dominance at left guard, but this one reigns supreme: Before the 2023 season, Martin had just as many holding penalties (7) as he had Pro Bowl appearances.

Now 33 years old, Martin was a First-Team All-Pro as a rookie and finished second in Offensive Rookie of the Year voting. He's been a First-Team All-Pro in seven of 10 seasons and the only season he hasn't made at least Second-Team All-Pro was in 2020 when he missed six games due to injury.

Martin has been a top five offensive linemen regardless of position since he stepped foot in the league. Guards don't receive as much recognition as tackles, but Martin is as talented as any OL that's suited up for the Cowboys.

2. Rayfield Wright

One of the unheralded stars of the Tom Landry era, Wright actually was drafted as a tight end before he converted to right tackle before his third season in 1969. By 1971, Wright established himself as one of the game's premier tackles.

Wright appeared in five Super Bowls with the Cowboys, including two wins, as the starting right tackle. He was named to six straight Pro Bowls from 1971 to 1976 and made three First-Team All-Pros during that span. A member of the NFL's All-Decade Team of the '70s, Wright was enshrined in the Cowboys' Ring of Honor in 2004 before he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006.

1. Larry Allen

Allen sadly passed away in June at 52 years old while vacationing with his family in Mexico. The sheer outpouring of tributes served as a reminder, albeit an unpleasant one, to just how dominant Allen was. He's widely regarded as one of the best offensive linemen in NFL history. He also might be the best player the Cowboys have ever had, regardless of position.

One of the best second-round picks of all-time, Allen was an All-Pro at three positions: left guard, left tackle and right guard.

Allen anchored the Cowboys' offensive line for 12 seasons. During that span, he made 10 Pro Bowls and seven All-Pro Teams. He won a Super Bowl in 1995 and made an unprecedented two NFL All-Decade teams in the 1990s and 2000s, as well as the 100th Anniversary Team.

The 10 best offensive lineman in Cowboys history by games started: