Everyone just assumes the Dallas Cowboys offense will be great again in 2026 and I don’t blame them. The talent is there, particularly at quarterback and wide receiver. However, concerns do exist.

The Cowboys have a pass protection problem at offensive tackle heading into 2026 training camp. Tyler Guyton, the former first-round pick entering a crucial third season, holds the key to whether the Cowboys offense simply remains good or reaches an entirely new level.

But I will say, Dallas has what it takes to overcome such issues. Even still, overcoming a weakness and eliminating it are two different things, and Guyton’s development could be the difference between a great offense and the best in the NFL. Let’s break it all down.

The interior is not the issue for Dallas

The Cowboys’ offensive line concerns live exclusively on the edges. On the interior, Dallas has one of the strongest trios in football.

Tyler Smith is among the top three offensive guards in the NFL. Tyler Booker, entering his second season at right guard, already looks like a difference maker after a stellar rookie campaign. And center Cooper Beebe, while perhaps not yet at the level of his fellow linemen, is a solid player who continues to improve.

Those three set the tone in the run game and provide reliable pass protection up the middle. We just don’t talk about them enough because, well, they’re interior linemen.

The real questions begin at tackle. Guyton is even “competing” for the left tackle spot with Nate Thomas, a former seventh-round pick from the same draft class. I’m putting that in quotes because I question if it’s a legitimate position battle. It reads more like a motivation tactic from head coach Brian Schottenheimer.

At right tackle, Terence Steele has struggled in pass protection ever since injuries derailed his trajectory. Steele has always been more of a run blocker than a pass protector, and his play deteriorated to the point where he had to take a pay cut to remain on the roster in 2026.

Why the Cowboys are built to overcome tackle concerns

Here’s the thing about the Cowboys’ pass protection issues: they’ve already proven they can work around them. In 2025, Dak Prescott was the best quarterback under pressure in the NFL. 

When under pressure, Prescott led the league in:

• success rate
• PFF passing grade
• completion percentage
• passing yards
• Data via PFF and Pro Football Network

How did he do it? He got rid of the football quickly without resorting to check downs, pushing the ball downfield consistently. And lost in the numbers above is the fact that he prevented pressure from happening at a stunning rate. PFF measures the percentage of dropbacks in which the quarterback was responsible for the pressure, and Prescott ranked 34th in the NFL. Most quarterbacks who ranked ahead of him either played fewer snaps or weren’t nearly as productive.

Beyond Prescott himself, the Cowboys have elite pass catchers in CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Ryan Flournoy, and tight end Jake Ferguson, who remains a reliable short-to-intermediate target even if you’d like to see more explosiveness from him.

Then there’s the scheme. The Cowboys coaching staff did a tremendous job marrying the passing game to the run game in 2025. The Cowboys leaned into max protection looks off play action, using their running back and tight end to assist in pass protection. They also had multiple answers for countering blitzes, whether from linebackers or defensive backs. If opponents forced one-on-one matchups through exotic pressures, Dallas had schematic counters ready. 

The Cowboys’ floor is alright but…

This entire conversation isn’t really about the Cowboys’ offensive floor being in danger. It’s about the pass protection holding back the offense’s upside.

If there’s a lack of trust in your offensive tackles, certain concepts become unavailable or highly risky. In other words, the Cowboys’ dropback game could expand beyond what it already does well. That limits creativity and makes the offense more predictable.

If Guyton takes a significant step forward in training camp and the Cowboys can get into five-man or six-man protection schemes with more confidence, the passing game could expand in explosive ways. Dallas already capitalized on deep shots in early downs last season. Imagine trusting the tackles enough to push the ball downfield on third-and-long or second-and-long, too.

If Guyton makes that Year 3 leap, I genuinely believe this could be the best offense in the NFL in 2026. 

If he doesn’t, the Cowboys face a can of worms: Do they start Thomas? Do they open up Pandora’s box of moving All-Pro guard Tyler Smith to left tackle? I wouldn’t love that, but it could be a viable answer.

All of these questions will be answered in training camp. But if I had to pinpoint one player who could raise both the floor and the ceiling of this Cowboys offense, it’s Tyler Guyton. And you can rest easy for now because the 2025 season already proved Dallas can make this work even without elite tackle play. I don’t have any reason to believe 2026 will be different.

The question is whether Guyton makes that jump or leaves the Cowboys looking for answers before the season even begins.