It is generally not a good sign for an NFL team or its former first-round pick if, entering the player’s third season, there are already significant questions as to whether the team will pick up the fifth-year option that is available on players picked in the first round. But for Cowboys left tackle Tyler Guyton, who has been one of the most talked-about young linemen in the league this offseason, that’s where the state of play sits.
Guyton was picked by the Cowboys with the No. 29 overall pick in 2024, and was immediately slotted in to replace longtime star Tyron Smith at left tackle. The Cowboys’ track record of drafting and developing linemen over the years has been among the best in the league, and while Guyton was considered raw at the time, his vast improvement in college combined with his size and athleticism made him a prime candidate to be a future Pro Bowler himself.
Except it has not worked out that way, not yet. Guyton had ups and downs as a rookie, but was said to be having a good offseason in 2025 before he suffered a knee injury that knocked him out for training camp. When he got back on the field, it was obvious that missing camp had set him back. Guyton’s season ultimately ended in Week 12 with a high ankle sprain.
‘Make or Break’ Year for Tyler Guyton
That has forced a spotlight onto Guyton this season, because he is playing a critical position and is one of the few major question marks for a Cowboys offense that is expected to be a juggernaut. Combine that with the fact that the Cowboys will decide after this season whether to pick up Guyton’s fifth-year option, which could pay him in the range of more than $15 million and set him up for a potential extension, and the importance of this season for him is clear.
At the Blogging the Boys Cowboys site, Guyton was tabbed as a player facing a “make-or-break” season.
As the site noted: “The team is losing their patience as Guyton has shuffled in and out of the line because of not only injury, but also performance.
As things are, the likelihood of the team picking up his fifth-year option the next offseason is in question, and with the addition of Drew Shelton in the fourth round this year, the Cowboys could already be looking at his replacement in the near future. Sure, it is early in Guyton’s career, but coupling his play thus far with the team’s sky-high hopes, those two things don’t coincide well with one another, and it leaves Guyton with the impetus to produce immediate results.”
Cowboys Will Be Open to Other Options
To be fair, it has been primarily injury that has forced Guyton out, though by the end of last season, coach Brian Schottenheimer said the decision to move Tyler Smith from guard to left tackle would have been made even if Guyton had been healthy. But the Cowboys do want Smith to stay at guard, where he has been an All-Pro.
The left tackle job, then, is likely Guyton’s to lose. His top challengers will be seventh-round pick Nate Thomas and rookie Drew Shelton, with a move of Smith back to tackle also very much on the table.
But by staying healthy and playing well, Guyton could solve a lot of problems–for himself and for the Cowboys.
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