Cowboys BREAKING: MRI Confirms Tyler Smith Injury

An MRI confirms that Tyler Smith has a hamstring strain. What does that mean for Sunday’s Cowboys at Giants regular-season opener?

FRISCO - The MRI results are in and the Dallas Cowboys have confirmed on Tuesday afternoon that prized guard Tyler Smith is dealing with a hamstring strain.

It slowed him in Monday’s practice session here inside The Star. Now, what will the result, first noted by the Dallas News, mean for Sunday?

“We felt better after we visited and assessed it after practice,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said in a Tuesday morning visit on 105.3 The Fan. “Hopefully it’s not serious enough to impact him (Sunday night).”

“Sunday Night Football” is of course the big stage and the Cowboys’ NFL season-opener at the New York Giants.

“Nothing that we’ve evaluated keeps him out of it at this point,” said Jones of Smith, the Cowboys’ first-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft who has quickly emerged as a standout as a protector of QB Dak Prescott.

The Cowboys are thin in the offensive line behind their heralded starting five … though as Jones points out, that is not an especially unusual circumstance in the league.

“Get in line,” quipped Jones of anyone who would wish for more depth, including on a Cowboys roster that management believes is worthy of Super Bowl contention. “I don’t know of a team in the NFL that doesn’t say that.”

Jones seems to be suggesting that Smith might be able to nurse himself through the week and will play Sunday. If not? Fifth-round rookie Asim Richards would be among the candidates to play in place of Smith.

Dallas’ two other injury issues of note as the New York prep continues here inside The Star are defensive end Sam Williams, who has missed a week of practice work, and safety Donovan Wilson, who has been out since the start of camp.