With training camp in California wrapped up and two preseason games already in the books, the Cowboys have a much clearer picture of where the roster stands. Most of it looks encouraging. Offensive tackle, though, is still a spot that demands attention.
That’s because Dallas doesn’t have complete confidence in its tackle group from top to bottom. Tyler Guyton and Terence Steele are the projected starters, but neither comes without questions.
Steele has been the right tackle for several years, yet he’s never really had to fend off serious competition for the job. The Cowboys like what he brings as a run blocker, but his pass protection has been shaky enough to make him something of a liability.
Guyton brings a different set of concerns. His health and inconsistency remain major issues, and there’s no real way to know whether he can solve both over the course of a full season. That uncertainty leaves Dallas in need of a reliable swing tackle.
Right now, Nate Thomas is the projected option in that role. He entered camp expected to push Guyton for the left tackle job, but that never turned into a real battle. Instead, Thomas appeared to slip a bit and may not even be a dependable backup at this point, which would be a tough blow for the Cowboys.
Beyond that top trio, there hasn’t been much to suggest anyone else is ready to step in as a starter or even handle an injury fill-in role. Ajani Cornelius has shown some promise in his second year, but he may fit better inside at guard than at tackle. And fourth-round pick Drew Shelton still looks like a developmental player.
So the situation at offensive tackle is far from ideal. Dallas could use an upgrade there, at least in terms of depth. The problem is finding one, since a lot of teams around the league are probably dealing with the same issue.
On the free-agent market, the options are thin. Taylor Decker stands out as the best available choice because of his starting experience with the Detroit Lions.
Jonah Williams is another name that could make sense. He has a connection with Klayton Adams from their brief time together with the Arizona Cardinals, and he also has experience at both left and right tackle. At the very least, he could be an upgrade over Nate Thomas as a swing tackle.
The Cowboys haven’t shown interest in either player so far, which may say something about how they view the market. They could be comfortable rolling with what they have, or they may already have a trade target in mind. Either way, this is a spot they’d be wise to keep monitoring closely, especially as cutdown day approaches.
In Other News...
Eagles Rookie Is Giving Cowboys Fans A Reason To Laugh
Training camp has already given Cowboys fans one small comfort in Philadelphia, and it comes courtesy of a rookie tight end who was supposed to help stabilize the Eagles passing game. Eli Stowers, a second-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, has instead spent much of camp and the preseason fighting to find his footing, with his blocking and receiving both drawing scrutiny as the Eagles try to sort through a depth chart battered by injuries at receiver.
For Dallas, the details are almost beside the point. Any time a division rival invests premium draft capital and then sees the early returns wobble, it invites the kind of unflattering comparisons that stick around, and Stowers has already been mentioned in the same breath as JJ Arcega-Whiteside, another second-round Eagles pick who never lived up to the billing. The bigger issue for Philadelphia is immediate pressure, because the injuries around him leave the rookie with even less margin for error as the season approaches. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Suddenly Have A Real Roster Decision At Two Key Spots
The Cowboys got a useful look at a few roster battles in their second preseason game, and it did more than just fill out the exhibition calendar. Joe Milton kept building his case to be the backup quarterback, while wide receivers Camden Brown and Jonathan Mingo both put themselves in the conversation for final roster spots. With cutdowns approaching, Dallas is watching not just who plays well, but who keeps stacking productive snaps when the competition gets tighter.
Snap counts are becoming part of the conversation too, which is usually a sign the decisions are getting real. The Cowboys are sorting through a deeper receiving mix and weighing how much value each player brings beyond one good night in August, and they are also open to exploring trades if that helps shape the 53-man roster. For a team trying to balance upside, depth and certainty, the next few evaluations may matter as much as anything that happened in the preseason opener. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Suddenly Face A Tough QB Roster Decision
Dak Prescott is locked in as the Cowboys starter, but the competition behind him has become one of the more interesting roster questions in camp. Sam Howell and Joe Milton III have both put together strong preseason stretches, enough to make Dallas at least consider carrying all three quarterbacks on the 53-man roster even though teams usually prefer to keep just two.
Todd Archer of ESPN projects that possibility, and it speaks to how much the backup battle has shifted from a routine depth issue to a real decision point. The Cowboys still have not settled the spot behind Prescott, and with the preseason winding down, the outcome is less about naming a favorite and more about deciding whether either Howell or Milton has done enough to force an extra quarterback onto the roster. [Read more 🡒]