5 potential Dallas Cowboys cap casualties in 2022 offseason

Dallas Cowboys potential cap casualty No. 3: Tyron Smith, LT

Back in the 2011 NFL Draft, the Cowboys had a tough decision to make when they were on the clock at No. 9 overall. They were apparently really high on Wisconsin defensive end J.J. Watt but also liked USC offensive tackle Tyron Smith. They also needed help at each position, making it harder to distinguish which way they should go.

In the end, the desire of former head coach Jason Garrett to dominate on offense with a powerful O-line won out and the choice was Smith. Looking back now, they couldn’t have gone wrong. Watt became a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year and Smith developed into one of the best tackles in the game, making it to eight Pro Bowls — in other words, it was the complete opposite of when they took Taco Charlton over T.J. Watt, that one was a colossal mistake.

Having said all that, it’s time for Dallas to consider moving on from Smith. He has started 144 career games and whenever he does, he’s lights out. The problem is, he hasn’t played a full season since 2015 — and missed six games this past campaign and 14 in 2020.

His continued absence means the Cowboys have to ensure they always have a starting-caliber tackle on the bench. Instead, they need to be able to trust the same player to be out there every week.

Cutting Smith and designating him a June-1 release would save them $13.5 million in cap space. Unless he takes a huge pay cut to stay, that could be where things are headed.