Nate Thomas got exposed

[kramskoi]

steele hasn't been good for 3 years. since his knee injury. he has zero and I mean zero lateral movement to his right and shuffles his left foot going to the left, dragging it. he has been toast for a long while now.

So what you need is for the light to go fully on for Guyton...and for Thomas to take Steele's position next year. My guess is that Steele will persist, with Thomas being used principally as a swing tackle...until he gets good enough to to finally supplant Steele (sooner than later) or the Cowboys simply draft another high round tackle in 27'.

Jerry has done a remarkable job of selling this fan base on the potential impact of his draft picks with his free agency avoidance strategy.

This was one of the gripes proffered by Aikman about Jerry Jones...that he hypes up "every single guy". His dad taught him WELL. Fake it til you make it...if there is no other plan.

 

[kskboys]

So what you need is for the light to go fully on for Guyton...and for Thomas to take Steele's position next year. My guess is that Steele will persist, with Thomas being used principally as a swing tackle...until he gets good enough to to finally supplant Steele (sooner than later) or the Cowboys simply draft another high round tackle in 27'.

This was one of the gripes proffered by Aikman about Jerry Jones...that he hypes up "every single guy". His dad taught him WELL. Fake it til you make it...if there is no other plan.

Agree.

Thomas looks like he can play ORT or OG.

 

[thunderpimp91]

Guyton has shown an upward trajectory. He has put together some solid games. Over the last half of the season he has probably been a league average OT. I think next year he can probably hit the Castonzo Class of LT's

As a pretty big Guyton critic I would agree with most of this. Hes certainly shown improvement over his last few games and does seem to be trending in the right direction.

The issue I have with Guyton is that we are about to wrap up season 2 for him and the best we can say is that hes flashed the ability to be average at times. The overall poor play combined with what has started to become a fairly consistent issue with him missing time would keep me from just penciling him in as a starter in 2026. I wouldn't hesitate to invest in a legitimate swing tackle that could push someone like Guyton in camp for his spot.

I'd love to see Guyton step up and take his game to the next level, but this offense is too good right now to be slowed down by another season of bad tackle play from both spots. I get that measurables are going to buy players more time in this league and Guyton certainly has those, but this team is shaping up to potentially be really good next year. We should be hedging our bets a little bit at the Tackle spots instead of being all in on the development of Guyton & Thomas.

 

[Loso86]

Slow feet. Just not quick enough for OLT. He got exposed big time last night.

Now don't get me wrong, I like him and think he's going to be a good player, just not a left tackle type. Not his fault, doesn't have the skillset. He got beat very badly last night.

Jes been exposed lol. Along with Murray

 

[kramskoi]

To me I think its obvious he is an NFL RT. Almost straight out of central casting. He preps all next offseason for RT(he prepped for LT this offseason), and I think he can be a plus starter next year. An upgrade over Steele at least

Well Thomas reportedly couldn't beat Steele out this year (in the open competition announced by Schottenheimer)...which is understandable given his preparation. Next off-season will be pivotal both for Thomas AND the team as it pertains to potential cap savings (post June 1 cut).

 

[kskboys]

Jes been exposed lol. Along with Murray

Absolutely, except Murray was exposed in 2020!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[kramskoi]

As a pretty big Guyton critic I would agree with most of this. Hes certainly shown improvement over his last few games and does seem to be trending in the right direction.

The issue I have with Guyton is that we are about to wrap up season 2 for him and the best we can say is that hes flashed the ability to be average at times. The overall poor play combined with what has started to become a fairly consistent issue with him missing time would keep me from just penciling him in as a starter in 2026. I wouldn't hesitate to invest in a legitimate swing tackle that could push someone like Guyton in camp for his spot.

I'd love to see Guyton step up and take his game to the next level, but this offense is too good right now to be slowed down by another season of bad tackle play from both spots. I get that measurables are going to buy players more time in this league and Guyton certainly has those, but this team is shaping up to potentially be really good next year. We should be hedging our bets a little bit at the Tackle spots instead of being all in on the development of Guyton & Thomas.

At the end of the day...Guyton has to be the man. Correct. He will have a lot of leeway due to his draft status. I believe Thomas is the would be heir apparent to Steele...not Guyton. What swing-tackle could you bring in that would be cheap and not on the older side? I remember the Jason Peters project. It was hit or miss mostly and certainly not a long-term solution. 1st round tackles need to play for a decade at least.

 

[kskboys]

At the end of the day...Guyton has to be the man. Correct. He will have a lot of leeway due to his draft status. I believe Thomas is the would be heir apparent to Steele...not Guyton. What swing-tackle could you bring in that would be cheap and not on the older side? I remember the Jason Peters project. It was hit or miss mostly and certainly not a long-term solution. 1st round tackles need to play for a decade at least.

I'm guessing most don't comprehend how badly we need for Guyton to work out. We have nothing else at OLT on the roster

 

[thunderpimp91]

At the end of the day...Guyton has to be the man. Correct. He will have a lot of leeway due to his draft status. I believe Thomas is the would be heir apparent to Steele...not Guyton. What swing-tackle could you bring in that would be cheap and not on the older side? I remember the Jason Peters project. It was hit or miss mostly and certainly not a long-term solution. 1st round tackles need to play for a decade at least.

Agree that bringing in a legitimate swing tackle is easier said than done, nor have I done my research on who may be available, but it would be a priority for me.

I've never been a fan of the "player acquisition is hard so lets hope for the best with what we've got" mentality. It may be an injury rebound candidate, the diamond in the rough who fits your system, or even a 2nd/3rd round pick after a trade back in this draft. I know you wont be bringing in a bonafide stud or even league average player, but you should be able to find some guys to bring that can at least be a reasonable plan B. Just glancing at the 2026 FA list maybe its a Josh Jones from Seattle who should be cheap but has some starts under his belt despite some obvious issues with his game. Not sure what the price would look like and I may be low on what he would cost, but would they go get a Jermaine Eluemunor for maybe $12M a year who has played some LT and let Thomas try to push Guyton this offseason for the RT spot?

Not sure what the exact solution is, but I'm tired of just saying lets pencil in player X because we took him round 1. Instead make that player earn it with competition thats more than just a lottery ticket late round pick/UDFA.

 

[CanadianCowboysFan]

He’s a 7th round rookie. Hard for me to say he got exposed he’s just what he is. The replacing Guyton garbage hopefully is seized.

The "exposed" is so overused, it's pitiful

 

[kskboys]

Agree that bringing in a legitimate swing tackle is easier said than done, nor have I done my research on who may be available, but it would be a priority for me.

I've never been a fan of the "player acquisition is hard so lets hope for the best with what we've got" mentality. It may be an injury rebound candidate, the diamond in the rough who fits your system, or even a 2nd/3rd round pick after a trade back in this draft. I know you wont be bringing in a bonafide stud or even league average player, but you should be able to find some guys to bring that can at least be a reasonable plan B. Just glancing at the 2026 FA list maybe its a Josh Jones from Seattle who should be cheap but has some starts under his belt despite some obvious issues with his game. Not sure what the price would look like and I may be low on what he would cost, but would they go get a Jermaine Eluemunor for maybe $12M a year who has played some LT and let Thomas try to push Guyton this offseason for the RT spot?

Not sure what the exact solution is, but I'm tired of just saying lets pencil in player X because we took him round 1. Instead make that player earn it with competition thats more than just a lottery ticket late round pick/UDFA.

Due to previous drafting gaffes, that is exactly what we are generally depending on, rooks to play very well. Just think if we hadn't been dumb enough to take Schooner? There were a host of LBs, OGs, and DTs available at that spot. That is the sort of bad draft picks that leaves us in a hole where we have to depend on rooks.

 

[kskboys]

The "exposed" is so overused, it's pitiful

Is it? You have problems w/ general NFL terminology? Yeah, something got exposed for sure.

 

[thunderpimp91]

Due to previous drafting gaffes, that is exactly what we are generally depending on, rooks to play very well. Just think if we hadn't been dumb enough to take Schooner? There were a host of LBs, OGs, and DTs available at that spot. That is the sort of bad draft picks that leaves us in a hole where we have to depend on rooks.

True, but this is why I won't let Jerry/Stephen off easy for positional holes on the roster. They've developed the roster with this methodology around the draft where they simply can't miss on many picks. When they do it only amplifies the need for them to figure out a solution, even if thats a unique one instead of just slow playing contract extensions with star players year after year so it looks like they are cap poor.

 

[kskboys]

True, but this is why I won't let Jerry/Stephen off easy for positional holes on the roster. They've developed the roster with this methodology around the draft where they simply can't miss on many picks. When they do it only amplifies the need for them to figure out a solution, even if thats a unique one instead of just slow playing contract extensions with star players year after year so it looks like they are cap poor.

Just gross mismanagement.

 

[gtb1943]

True, but this is why I won't let Jerry/Stephen off easy for positional holes on the roster. They've developed the roster with this methodology around the draft where they simply can't miss on many picks. When they do it only amplifies the need for them to figure out a solution, even if thats a unique one instead of just slow playing contract extensions with star players year after year so it looks like they are cap poor.

you cannot get from the draft what you need to keep your team really competitive. Draft, FA, Trades. It is a tripod that all championship teams need to utilize if they want to win it all.

NGM and company have again and again ignored FA for what it is meant for: plugging holes with good to better players.
They dumpster dive and that puts more pressure on trades and the draft with the result of things like Mingo and Lance using up valuable draft picks.

we have to get three quality starters a year out of our draft, plus at least a couple of good backups to make up for the FA negligence. And NO TEAM DRAFTS THAT WELL.

 

[thunderpimp91]

you cannot get from the draft what you need to keep your team really competitive. Draft, FA, Trades. It is a tripod that all championship teams need to utilize if they want to win it all.

NGM and company have again and again ignored FA for what it is meant for: plugging holes with good to better players.
They dumpster dive and that puts more pressure on trades and the draft with the result of things like Mingo and Lance using up valuable draft picks.

we have to get three quality starters a year out of our draft, plus at least a couple of good backups to make up for the FA negligence. And NO TEAM DRAFTS THAT WELL.

100%. I'm hopeful Jerry is ready to go all in on an offseason. If he does this team has a chance in 2026...without him going that route we are looking at the same team that will be pretty talented but with too many holes to beat better opponents.

 

[fivetwos]

you cannot get from the draft what you need to keep your team really competitive. Draft, FA, Trades. It is a tripod that all championship teams need to utilize if they want to win it all.

NGM and company have again and again ignored FA for what it is meant for: plugging holes with good to better players.
They dumpster dive and that puts more pressure on trades and the draft with the result of things like Mingo and Lance using up valuable draft picks.

we have to get three quality starters a year out of our draft, plus at least a couple of good backups to make up for the FA negligence. And NO TEAM DRAFTS THAT WELL.

Exactly. I’ve been moaning over that for years.

I really don’t know where this “they draft well” narrative came from.

Now, every team makes draft mistakes, but if you’re going to completely ignore FA for legit starters, you have to be close to perfect, and they aren’t.

They also count on immediate help from too many of them when they aren’t ready just yet. It results in weaknesses that the better teams exploit. Happens year after year, but they are living off the brand and things that happened 30 years ago.

Think about this….they use a philosophy that no other pro sports team does, haven’t made an NFC final in 30 years, but stay with the same stupid philosophy that fails every year while they are arrogant to the point where you’d think they are beating up on everyone consistently. Frustrating beyond belief.

 

[gtb1943]

Exactly. I’ve been moaning over that for years.

I really don’t know where this “they draft well” narrative came from.

Now, every team makes draft mistakes, but if you’re going to completely ignore FA for legit starters, you have to be close to perfect, and they aren’t.

They also count on immediate help from too many of them when they aren’t ready just yet. It results in weaknesses that the better teams exploit. Happens year after year, but they are living off the brand and things that happened 30 years ago.

Think about this….they use a philosophy that no other pro sports team does, haven’t made an NFC final in 30 years, but stay with the same stupid philosophy that fails every year while they are arrogant to the point where you’d think they are beating up on everyone consistently. Frustrating beyond belief.

did not one of NGM's minions start a thread about how he has done a good job this year?

 

[CanadianCowboysFan]

Is it? You have problems w/ general NFL terminology? Yeah, something got exposed for sure.

Yes it is

 

[fivetwos]

did not one of NGM's minions start a thread about how he has done a good job this year?

Not sure what you mean but it wasn’t me. I’m happy with the QW trade despite the cost. That guy will give us five solid seasons.

Jerry can never do a good job. He isn’t qualified to begin with, and he has the son who Id swear isn’t on the same page as him….and karma (believe it if you like) isn’t on his side.