Cowboys' Left Tackle Competition Isn't Much of a Battle Going Into Training Camp

While the Cowboys have said there is a left tackle competition publicly, it doesn't appear that's actually the case going into training camp.

Dallas Cowboys tackle Tyler Guyton. | Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

The Dallas Cowboys' left tackle competition between Tyler Guyton and Nate Thomas appears to be quite one-sided at the moment.

During OTAs, head coach Brian Schottenheimer noted that the two would be competing for the left tackle job after Guyton had struggled in his second NFL season.

"We're gonna make Tyler earn it," Schottenheimer said. "We think that's gonna get the best out of Tyler Guyton and Nate Thomas."

However, it doesn't seem to be much of a competition at the moment, with The Athletic's Jon Machota reporting Guyton remains the "clear favorite" after getting all first-team reps throughout minicamp.

"It’s a competition between Tyler Guyton and Nate Thomas, but Guyton is the clear favorite," he said. "He was the one running with the first-team through minicamp practices. As long as he can stay healthy, Guyton should hold down that spot in his third season."

Thomas wasn't even getting all of the second-team reps at left tackle, with rookie Drew Shelton getting some of those looks.

"We’ve focused on Tyler Guyton vs. Nate Thomas at LT, but Thomas played RT with the second team today," Joseph Hoyt of the Dallas Morning News reported. "Who was the second team LT behind Guyton? Rookie Drew Shelton."

All of that just goes to show even more that Thomas isn't a serious competitor to unseat Guyton and the former first-round pick should cruise to retaining his job.

Not a surprising development

Dallas Cowboys tackle Nate Thomas. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Of course, nobody should really be shocked by any of this. When surveying the situation in its entirety, did anyone really think Thomas was going to steal the job away from Guyton?

The Cowboys have way too much invested in Guyton to pull the plug on him after two seasons.

Adding to that, Thomas wasn't a good enough form of competition to actually threaten Guyton after he had the second-worst overall grade (39.2) and worst pass-blocking grade (31.6) among tackles last season, according to Pro Football Focus.

Is Tyler Guyton safe the entire season?

Dallas Cowboys offensive tackle Tyler Guyton. | Cory Knowlton-Imagn Images

We would push back on Machota saying Guyton will keep the job all season, barring injury.

While it's certainly possible Guyton gets enough leash to last the entire season no matter what, we do believe the Cowboys won't oppose making a switch if he struggles and the team is in contention.

Maybe it'll be Thomas, Shelton or Tyler Smith, but one way or the other the Cowboys can't allow Guyton to stay in that spot if his play isn't up to snuff.

But just because Guyton struggles doesn't mean a switch is going to happen. Dallas has to be confident in its options behind Guyton at tackle or Smith at guard in order to bench him.