3 pending 2024 free agents Cowboys fans should worry about losing, 1 who can walk

1. Cowboys have reached the time to part ways with Tyron Smith

Tyron Smith has been everything that the Dalls Cowboys could’ve hoped he’d be since they drafted the left tackle out of USC with the ninth overall pick in 2011. He’s an eight-time Pro Bowler, two-time First-Team All-Pro selection, and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame All-2010s team. He’s been the absolute goods for Jerry Jones’ team.

Injuries, however, have become quite a major problem for Smith as he enters his mid-30s. He hasn’t played more than 13 games in a season since 2015, to begin with. But more recently, he’s played in just two, 11 and four games over the past three years with Dallas, respectively.

Even with those injuries, it’s been remarkable how well that Tyron Smith has played when he has been available and on the field. It’s just become a hard position for the Cowboys that he quite clearly can’t be relied upon to play an entire season.

Now, Smith is set to become a free agent after this season. Yes, by letting him go, Dallas would be taking on a $6 million dead cap hit for 2024 due to restructures. While that’s not ideal, the fact of the matter is that Smith has struggled to stay healthy combined with drafting Tyler Smith in the first round in 2022 and needing to lock up Terence Steele, Smith just isn’t a priority.

Without question, it’s not an exaggeration to call Tyron Smith a franchise legend. He was one of the stalwarts and leaders for an offensive line that was one of the best in the NFL for an extended run in the 2010s. But this is still a business and, in that cutthroat manner, keeping the left tackle beyond the 2023 season just isn’t a smart move for the future.