It was a rough Thursday night for the Dallas Cowboys, who fell 24-16 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and didn’t have much to hang onto afterward. Michael Irvin said the sideline felt “hopeless” while the Cowboys were getting outplayed, which pretty much captured the mood.
But even in a loss like that, Tyler Guyton gave Dallas something to point to.
The Cowboys’ starting left tackle is in the middle of a breakout season, and this time the spotlight shifted to his work in the run game. Pro Football Focus gave Guyton a 91.5 run-blocking grade in Week 5, good for second-best among all players so far. The only name ahead of him was Detroit Lions tackle Penei Sewell, who checked in at 93.4.
Highest run blocking grade so far in Week 5Penei Sewell 93.4Tyler Guyton 91.5Christian Haynes 90.4Ed Ingram 88.7Dalton Risner 87.9 pic.twitter.com/N8QVHQxdEV
There is still one game left in the week, with the Los Angeles Rams hosting the Buffalo Bills, but it would take a big finish for anyone to jump Guyton or Sewell. Either way, Guyton’s showing against Tampa Bay stood on its own.
And the numbers back up that this isn’t a one-week fluke. Entering Week 6, Guyton owns an overall PFF grade of 73.8, which ranks 15th at his position. His run-blocking grade has been even better, sitting at 90.0, third-best among offensive tackles.
What’s been most impressive is how much he’s grown in pass protection. Through five games, Guyton has given up 12 pressures and zero sacks. He’s also kept the flags to a minimum, with just one penalty across 317 snaps.
That kind of rise makes the preseason competition look a lot different in hindsight. Before training camp, head coach Brian Schottenheimer said Guyton would have to win the job while battling Nate Thomas.
Guyton did exactly that, locking down the starting left tackle spot. Thomas was gone by the start of the season after being traded to the Houston Texans.
Thomas’ old swing-tackle role went to Broderick Jones, who arrived in a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
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