Cowboys left tackle Tyron Smith missed three full games and parts of two others with a back injury last season and the Cowboys missed him a lot when he wasn’t in the lineup.
His absence was missed the most in back-to-back games to the Falcons and Eagles that saw Dak Prescott get sacked 12 times in losses that loomed large when the 9-7 Cowboys wound up missing the postseason. It’s the second straight year that Smith has dealt with back issues and he said Saturday that he started doing rehab work earlier this offseason in hopes of avoiding more problems in the future.
That approach has been working so far.
“I’m feeling great now,” Smith said, via the team’s website. “Actually, I feel like I’m in the best shape I’ve been in a while. I’ve taken this offseason to get back into it a little early and try to take care of my body a little more. I’m just doing the little small [rehab] things and I just feel awesome right now.”
There are several things that would aid the Cowboys offense in 2018, including having Ezekiel Elliott in the lineup for a full season. A healthy year for Smith is right at the top of the list as well, so people in Dallas will be hoping these early results foretell good things for the months to come.