No one feels particularly good about the Dallas Cowboys‘ stunning 24-16 Week 5 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but performance wasn’t the only real concern.
The Cowboys’ defense surrendered over 400 yards, and the offense turned the ball over three times. It was about as messy a loss as Dallas could have gotten.
Another major concern, though, was a second-half offensive line injury that could hurt the Cowboys. Starting left tackle Tyler Guyton left the game with an injury; Broderick Jones took over for the rest of the way. That raised major questions about Guyton’s injury, but he may have avoided disaster for now.
Dallas Cowboys Got Good News on Tyler Guyton
After the game, Guyton received an update. ESPN Cowboys reporter Todd Archer shared more about what is known about Guyton.
“Tyler Guyton had a back injury. X-rays at the stadium were good, but he will get more examinations on Friday.”
Tyler Guyton had a back injury. X-rays at the stadium were good, but he will get more examinations on Friday.
Guyton has had a great start to the 2026 season and is one of the best left tackles in the NFL. He has allowed 10 pressures and 2 quarterback hits in 192 pass-blocking snaps.
Pro Football Focus grades him the seventh-best tackle in the league out of 69, with a 78.3 grade. He also has a pass-blocking grade of 66.3 (ranked 40th) and a run-blocking grade of 87.4 (ranked third).
Cowboys Might Have Avoided Disaster With Tyler Guyton
Guyton has been a bright spot on this Cowboys offensive line, and they just got Tyler Smith back to help. Going into training camp, Guyton had questions about starting at left tackle, but he answered the call.
With the team trending in the wrong direction, Dallas cannot afford to let anything go off the rails. Losing a player like Guyton would crush any hopes this team has of bouncing back.
Dallas now sits at 2-3, with 10 days to sit and think about this loss. The good thing about the longer break is that it will give Guyton more time to heal. Everyone hopes he just needs some rest and recovery this week to get back to being okay.
While everyone will monitor that situation, the Cowboys face much bigger problems. The defense once again failed them, allowing too many yards. Their offense failed to protect the football and couldn’t consistently move the chains.
Changes will be made over the next week to get this team back on track and avoid another loss like this. While no jobs will be on the line for now, that doesn’t mean jobs can’t be lost later in the year. This is a big 10-day stretch for the franchise to get things back on the right path.
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