Green Bay Packers: 5 Things to Know About the Cowboys
By Paul Bretl
How will the loss of Tyron Smith affect the Cowboys?
Reid: Pretty significantly. Many people incorrectly attribute some of Dak Prescott’s worst performances to Zeke’s absence but it’s really Tyron’s absence that has produced Dak’s worst games. Since the Cowboys don’t like to double-team edge rushers, they struggle with replacing either of their blue-chip OTs. Without Smith at LT, we’ve seen increased sacks, a drop in yards/play, as well as a drop in EPA/play. It’s been really ugly.
Fun Fact: With Tyron by his side, Dak is actually 4-0 in his last four games without Zeke, with the offense improving in points, EPA/play, and yards/play.
Without Tyron, I expect to see Zeke chipping on 5-step drops and considerably more RPOs and read-options.
Takeaway: As Reid pointed out this is a pretty significant loss for Dallas and is hopefully a matchup that the Green Bay Packers can take advantage of. The Packer defense has been at their best when Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith are able to put pressure on the quarterback which has eventually led to mistakes and turnovers. However, they were unable to do this against Philadelphia, but this matchup should give them the opportunity to get back on track.