What Will Happen to Tyron Smith?

By:  Bobby Shores

Lost in the shuffle of all the Cowboys free agency madness is the effect that this will have on last years rookie standout Tyron Smith. At the season's end the whole world was ready to stick him at left tackle for the next 10 years and not worry about, unfortunately I think there is more to this than meets the eye......

After an outstanding rookie year last year, coupled with Doug Free's struggles, the decision was made (correctly I think) to move Smith to the left side and Free back to the right, where he excelled in seasons past. The Cowboys not only changed Smith's position, they also replaced the only offensive line coach he had ever known (yes, I know it was only 1 year, but I have to make this more dramatic to make my point) in Hudson Houck with Bill Callahan, on-field mentor Kyle Kosier is being cut who was also responsible for making all the line calls, every other position on the line will probably be different, he is still very young and will not be 22 until the regular season is almost over, he is a Top 10 Pick, he plays in Dallas at the most important position on the offensive line and everybody from the media to the fans keep assuming that left tackle has been secured for the next 10 years.

Yea, that is a lot of change for such a young guy.......Let's look at each one in some more detail.....

Before the start of the 2011 season, the Cowboys made the decision to move veteran offensive guard Kyle Kosier to the right side to help Smith develop, and help him he did. Not only has Kosier been responsible for making the offensive line calls (usually the job of the center), he was able to make sure that Smith knew what to do and how to do it, and was there to help him when he got in trouble. Kosier basically acted as his on-field mentor, and I am not sure that there is anybody currently on the roster than can replace him.

The move to the premier position on the offensive line, the left side, is another big change for Smith. While he was in the spotlight as a Top 10 pick and instant starter last year, moving to left tackle will really put him under the microscope. Not only are two of the Cowboys division foes in the Top 5 in sacks (Eagles & Giants), the Redskins only missed being in the Top 10 by 1 sack, and now Smith will face the top rusher on each team rather than the second or third best rusher.

Another big change for Smith is that the only offensive line coach he has known in the NFL, Hudson Houck, retired after the season. While I have no reason to believe that his replacement, Bill Callahan, is not as good (or even better) than him, I know that they had a special relationship and spent hours after practice and in the film room together. Houck was integral to Smith's success last season, and I only hope that Smith and Callahan are able to form a similar bond.

Continuity is a big part of helping young players develop in the early years of their career, and not only is rookie phenom Smith losing his mentors in Kosier and Houck, it appears that every other position on the line will be different as well, of course there was not a lot of continuity last year either. With the signing of Nate Livings and Mackenzy Bernadeau to most likely replace Kosier and Montrae Holland while the Center position is completely wide open. Stability will be needed at the left guard position for Smith as I am a firm believer that many of the Doug Free's struggles last season can be attributed to the revolving door at the guard spot next to him.

Finally, the reasons I think he could struggle this year is that he is still only 21 years old, playing in one of (if not THE) the most scrutinized football markets in the NFL, playing a highly scrutinized position as a Top 10 pick who excelled his rookie year. All this means there will be lots of pressure for him to build on his rookie success regardless of age, position change, coaching changes, personnel changes, etc.

How Two Arkansas O-Linemen will benefit in the NFL due to Bobby Petrino's offense

While it may seem that I am singling out Razorbacks to talk about in my articles lately, it is.  The reason is because I have rarely missed their games in the past 10+ years (especially since Petrino took over and there games are actually on TV in my area) and I know about them, so I am going to write what I know.  In a previous article I talked a lot about how Bobby Petrino's offense greatly benefited Ryan Mallett, and D.J. Williams, well it benefits most all the players on the offensive side of the ball, and since they have a couple of tackles and what I consider to be an elite Tight End available in the draft I thought I would talk about how they were helped also.

Another position that benefited from Petrino's offense is the linemen, specifically the tackles, and to a lesser extent the guards.  For this exercise we are focusing on the two tackles that are draft eligible:  DeMarcus Love and Ray Dominguez.  In Petrino's offense there is not a "left tackle" and a "right tackle" there is the "strong tackle" and the "weak tackle".  The tackles are constantly switching sides trying to take advantage of specific match ups the defense gives them.  For a tackle (even though Dominguez will probably be a guard in the NFL) this means that both guys have experience playing with either hand down, and will be comfortable playing on either side of the line in the NFL.  And we all know that NFL coaches value a "swing tackle" or any versatile player (especially O-linemen) very much at the pro level.  This gives NFL teams flexibility, and increased continuity if there is an injury on the line, it's another aspect that gives NFL coaches more control (and NFL coaches are super control freaks).  Another big advantage these two players have is that at Arkansas they ran a lot of zone blocking which translates to quite a few teams in the NFL.

Neither one of these guys is expected to be a high pick, I project them both to be mid-round guys (3-5 for Love and 5-7 for Dominguez), but they bring other assets to the table.  For DeMarcus Love he has good size for a left tackle, but will probably play right tackle in the league, but his work ethic on and off the field are unrivaled, along with his dedication to community service, he is quiet but leads by example.  Ray Dominguez on the other hand is to slow with to short of arms and not powerful enough to be an effective tackle in the NFL at this point.  Given some time in an NFL weight room I believe he will be at most an effective Right Guard in the NFL, and at the worst he will be a great insurance policy as a guy that can line up at many spots on the line.

So no matter which way you slice it these two guys provide good value in this draft.