What Tyler Smith's Injured Reserve Stint Means for the Cowboys' Offensive Line
Summary: This article explains why the Dallas Cowboys placed left guard Tyler Smith on injured reserve, who replaces him, and when he could return during the regular season.
The move and the injured thumb
The Dallas Cowboys have placed left guard Tyler Smith on injured reserve because of a thumb injury. Head coach Brian Schottenheimer said Smith will undergo surgery to fix a nagging problem that has bothered him for a while. The team expects him to miss four to six weeks.
Smith's durability has been a question before. He played all 17 games as a rookie in 2022, but he has missed at least one game in every season since. He appeared in 14 games in 2023 and 16 games in each of the last two years. This time, the absence comes at the start of a brutal stretch of the schedule.
Who steps in at left guard
With Smith out, the Cowboys plan to move Brock Bass into the starting left guard spot. Wait — the team did not provide a first name in the reports, but the player is generally known as Bass. Bass has 10 career starts, five of them last season, and the Cowboys gave him a second-round restricted free agent tender this offseason. That move showed they wanted to keep him as a key interior reserve for exactly this kind of situation.
The injury also opens a roster spot. One option for Dallas is to promote Nick Leverett from the practice squad. Leverett had a strong training camp and preseason as a backup center. If Bass moves to left guard, Leverett could take over the backup center role behind the projected starter.
So the line shuffles: a left guard goes to injured reserve, a reserve guard steps into the starting lineup, and a backup center moves up in the depth chart. That is how one roster move can affect multiple positions.
How the IR timeline works
Smith's status on injured reserve means he must miss at least four games. He will definitely be out for the first four weeks, when the Cowboys face the Giants, Commanders, Ravens, and Texans. That is a demanding early-season group with strong defensive lines.
Under NFL rules, Smith becomes eligible to return in Week 5, when Dallas plays Tampa Bay. The team would first need to open his 21-day practice window. If he is ready, he could be activated immediately. If not, the Cowboys could keep him on injured reserve through the longer end of the four-to-six-week recovery timeline.
The designation as "IR-designated for return" gives Dallas flexibility. It preserves a roster spot during the first month while leaving the door open for Smith to rejoin the offensive line later. Until then, Bass and Leverett have to hold the middle of the line together.