Dallas Cowboys v Arizona Cardinals
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FRISCO, Texas --  It's impossible for any offense in football to move up and down the field without a competent offensive line, and that's certainly the case for the Dallas Cowboys and their top 10 scoring offense (22.9 offensive points per game, ninth-best in the NFL). Their offensive front has a 71.5 run-blocking grade from Pro Football Focus, the fifth-highest in the NFL entering Week 10, and their 32.5% quarterback pressure rate allowed is the eighth-best in the NFL in Week 10. 

Much of that success in pass-protection can be attributed to the left side of their line where the law firm of Smith and Smith, eight-time Pro Bowl left tackle Tyron Smith (32 years old) and 2022 first-round pick left guard Tyler Smith (22 years old), hold court. Tyron Smith's 80.4 PFF grade ranks as the eighth-highest in the entire NFL entering Week 10, and he's coming off a throwback game in which he had 53 pass-blocking snaps where he did not allow a single quarterback pressure against the defending NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles vaunted front in a narrow 28-23 road loss in Week 9. 

"That's the Tyron Smith I remember," Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said Monday. "That's the best game I've seen Tyron play since I've been here in my time here in Dallas. I thought the left side as a whole [Tyron Smith and Tyler Smith] was the best game that they played. Tyron and Tyler graded out really well."

Week 9 was Tyron Smith's second-most pass-blocking plays without allowing a quarterback pressure dating to 2017, as far back as PFF's single-game blocking data goes, trailing on his 62 pass-blocking snap masterpiece in the 2021 season opener at the then-defending Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

"[Tyron] Played unbelievable," Cowboys offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer said Monday. "I really thought the whole left side played awesome. … I thought Tyron looked very comfortable. He was really square with his sets, his punches were great. Anytime it's a quiet day that you don't even notice, you know he has played his ass off, which he certainly did."

Given that the 2023 season is Tyron Smith's 13th in the NFL, the key to the 2010's All-Decade Team member's success is in the details. 

"He's played a lot of football so maybe, you know, it's knowing your weapons and understanding the tendencies of the others," McCarthy said Wednesday. … "The real money is in the little things. That's the game within the game. The techniques, how you're going to play a guy, what are the tips and the mannerisms, how you play off them to execute those things."

His rebound from the leg and neck injuries over these past years may be surprising to some given Smith's on the other side of 30, but it hasn't caught quarterback Dak Prescott off guard. 

"Surprised by his play? That's Tyron Smith," Prescott said Thursday when asked about Smith's 2023 revival and overcoming his recent injury woes. "One of the best tackles to play this game. Obviously, yeah it sucks when he's had his injuries and little nags that have held him out, but when he's out there, there is nobody better. When he gets his hands on you, it's over with. Been one of the best for a long time before I ever got started playing in this [league]. Throughout my career, when he's available, you don't have to worry about that side of the ball. Thankful for him. It's about keeping him healthy. ... I'm spoiled in that sense. ... When you have a guy who has been one of the best, if not the best, as his position for over 10 years now." 

It also helps to have an ascending, likely future Pro Bowler in the 22-year-old Tyler Smith lining up a left guard next to the elder Smith. The second-year guard ranks even higher among his peers in 2023 than Tyron does as Tyler Smith's 79.1 PFF grade ranks as the third-highest in the NFL among offensive guards this season. When it comes to pass-blocking Smith is as good as it gets among left guards: his 3.3% quarterback pressure rate allowed this season is the lowest among left guards with at least 150 pass-blocking snaps, according to the NFL's Next Gen Stats.  

"I think the biggest thing is he's been able to get some continuity," McCarthy said Wednesday when asked about Tyler Smith's Year 2 ascendance. "He is playing one position. His reps were split last year [between left tackle and left guard] leading up to the season and where he finally played. I think he is very comfortable now at guard. The fact that he has been able to play next to Tyron is something that continues. I thought our left side had their best performance [at the Eagles in Week 9] since I've been here [since 2020]. Both of those two guys will hopefully play a lot of football together."

Tyron Smith suffered a significant hamstring and knee injury in training camp in 2022, which caused him to miss all but the final four games of last season, and has dealt with neck stingers that have caused him to miss three games this season. So, Tyler Smith has played 16 of his 23 career NFL games without Tyron Smith beside him, but the elder Smith has started three of the last four games in 2023, perhaps providing hope that the dynamic duo could start to have some prolonged time on the field together. 

"The cool thing talking to Tyron is how excited he is to be working next to a Tyler Smith because those two guys together are obviously a very formidable duo," Schottenheimer said. He was excited about that, but if you think about it, they haven't played a whole lot together. We're thrilled to be able to keep building on that movement this week [against the New York Giants in Week 10]."