Cowboys practice #7: Nate Thomas thrown into the fire at left tackle

How much confidence do you have in the Cowboys without Tyler Guyton?

The way new Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer has built a level of trust in the fanbase from the time of his hire to just a few practices into his first training camp is nothing short of remarkable. The Cowboys took to the practice field again on Wednesday after a day off on Tuesday, marking their first practice since losing left tackle Tyler Guyton on Monday to what is luckily not an ACL tear.

Guyton will still factor into the Cowboys plans at left tackle, but will do so after missing valuable reps in a new system with a new play-caller, offensive coordinator, and line coach. On top of that, Guyton did not have the type of rookie season the Cowboys have come to expect from first-round offensive linemen.

Guyton’s injury is the latest open door in the name of competition and finding the best players ready to compete in Oxnard. The first opportunity to step into the starting left tackle role went to second-year draft pick Nate Thomas. On paper, this fact alone should be ringing alarm bells all throughout the Cowboys fanbase and a very serious cause for concern.

For a team with so many questions coming into the year on the heels of their first losing season in four tries, there simply is nothing more important to the Cowboys turning things around than the health, level of play, and support they give to quarterback Dak Prescott. A quality left tackle is very high on the list of priority positions when it comes to supporting a franchise quarterback, and Dallas of all teams knows they need to be deeper to withstand the season’s attrition. Yet here they are in Oxnard, one injury away from a player with zero professional snaps being the starting practice left tackle. A seventh-round draft pick in 2024, Thomas was hurt and placed on injured reserve before ever getting a chance to appear in the preseason as a rookie.

This is where that trust in Schottenheimer comes in. Thomas was a player he called out early on as one that’s caught his eye going into his second camp with the Cowboys. So far, it seems like at least on the true football stuff between the lines, fans are willing to buy into Schottenheimer’s vision for the offense. There is excitement for his use of new route concepts, motions, shifts, and run game focus, but now this list must include a solid plan to solve for left tackle. Wednesday’s practice was the first glimpse into what these things may look like, although the Cowboys went through it in shells instead of full pads, after back-to-back fully-padded practices on Sunday and Monday.

Thomas and Asim Richards shared the reps at left tackle throughout this practice, which is noteworthy, but also done out of necessity. Backup tackle Hakeem Adeniji was in street clothes and not available at Wednesday’s practice, and rookie Ajani Cornerlius was kicked out of practice for fighting. The Cowboys simply didn’t have many options beyond Thomas and Richards, even if they wanted them.

This puts an even bigger spotlight on Thomas to perform with the first crack at starting LT reps. As Schottenheimer pointed out, this is a square player with a very large frame that is hard to get around as a tackle. Thomas is not the most graceful or technically sound tackle, but at his best is able to overpower defenders and push them upfield. This trait will fit in particularly well with what the Cowboys are aiming for in the run game, but pass protection for Prescott still needs to be a higher priority at the LT spot.

Some of the ways the Cowboys can help Thomas get up to speed as a pass protector if called upon to make real starts were on display in Oxnard. Getting the ball out of Prescott’s hands quickly and to his playmakers in space is a goal in the short passing game, which was on display as the Cowboys did a good amount of red zone work.

All Thomas has to do on this rep is get the hands of the defensive end down to give Prescott a clear lane to throw a fade to CeeDee Lamb, and the Cowboys WR1 did the rest. Thomas measured in the 90th percentile for hand size as a prospect out of Louisiana, and can use them to stop defenders in their tracks.

This is not a tackle the Cowboys will want to see dealing with too many hyper-athletic rushers capable of stringing together pass rush moves and countering, but getting overpowered or conceding the corner with a bad get off are lesser concerns with Thomas.

Thomas will give ground in his set and wait to engage rushers until they’re closer to the level of the quarterback, which is not always ideal, but also something the Cowboys can use to their advantage with a mobile QB like Prescott and their deep cast of running backs and receiving tight ends to take advantage of space in the flats.

This style of pass pro can be seen in this clip from Thomas, on a play that has become a staple of Cowboys practices so far, Prescott completing the ball all over the field to TE1 Jake Ferguson.

There were also several reps where Thomas failing to engage his defender sooner led to him being put on skates a bit, but overall he was still able to get the job done and allow the offense to work even without Prescott involved. The Cowboys do still want to push the ball downfield with mainly Lamb and George Pickens, and even saw Traeshon Holden score one of two practice touchdowns on a double move Wednesday. These passes take holding up in pass protection to execute, which backup Joe Milton did for another touchdown here.

This play is also a fantastic example of how the Cowboys can conceptually help not only Thomas but any of their tackles, with concerns at both spots right now. John Stephens Jr. was one of two tight ends lined up on the same strong side as Thomas, which helped him get access downfield in his route and finish with a touchdown.

The Cowboys have a plethora of players they can use in similar roles to change the rush lanes for defenders across multiple positions. Tight ends like Ferguson, Luke Schoonmaker, Brevyn Spann-Ford (once available again), and Stephens Jr. are logical places to start, but Dallas also has fullback Hunter Luepke and big receivers like Jonathan Mingo capable of chipping in. In the past, they’ve even used speed players in motion to create this chipping effect, including KaVontae Turpin who is already vying for a bigger role in the offense as a whole.

According to ESPN’s Todd Archer’s practice report from Wednesday, which also mentions Luepke’s work as a tight end, Thomas took most of his reps against rushers Marshawn Kneeland, Sam Williams, and rookie Donovan Ezeiruaku.

Wednesday, July 30

Nate Thomas spent last year, his rookie season, on injured reserve because of a knee issue. On Wednesday, he was the Cowboys’ starting left tackle with Tyler Guyton out 4-6 weeks with a bone fracture in his knee.

Thomas was a seventh-round pick in 2024 and never found his footing because of the knee injury. He has impressed the coaches with his work not only to get back on the field, but his ability. At 6-feet-5, 330 pounds, Brian Schottenheimer said, he’s a “big man, great feet, great length and powerful.”

On Wednesday, Thomas more than held his own against either Marshawn Kneeland, Sam Williams or Donovan Ezeiruaku.

“I’ve just been working in the offseason to get the knee right, making sure I’m in the playbook, understanding the scheme,” Thomas said. “Just making sure that I’m ready to go whenever my number is called.”

It might be called Week 1 against the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles.

More:

The practice was not in pads, but Dak Prescott had five touchdown passes Wednesday, including back-to-back scores on throws to CeeDee Lamb (fade) and George Pickens (back pylon).

FB Hunter Luepke went through individual drills with the tight ends and lined up at the end of the line numerous times. Schottenheimer has singled him out on multiple occasions in camp.

To mostly hold his own against this group of athletic and versatile defensive ends is impressive. These defenders are just three of many of the players on the Cowboys defensive line they hope can have a real strength in numbers approach to making the defensive pass rush one of the best units on the team. Coach Schottenheimer was asked about how to prepare for and scheme against talented defensive lines in his most recent press conference, and if DC Matt Eberflus has his way, Schottenheimer will get to practice this approach calling plays against the Cowboys DL all training camp and beyond.

The main takeaway from Schottenheimer here is that running the ball consistently between the tackles can neutralize a great pass rush. While there aren’t a ton of clips to show off how the Cowboys ran the ball well with Thomas in the lineup from Wednesday, a screen pass might be the next best thing, especially given the overall athletic makeup of the entire offensive line.

This play to Javontae Williams was a thing of beauty, with Thomas drawing his defender up field to make space for the back, and first-round pick Tyler Booker stealing the show by getting out in the open field and lead blocking the big gain.

The Cowboys are still looking to better channel their physicality and toughness with less fighting and more execution on the offensive line and run game. This mission will continue in just two practices over the next four days, giving the Cowboys some rest and a chance to focus on attention to detail and discipline. For Schotty and the offensive staff, paying attention to the details from an incredibly raw player like Thomas being thrust into the left tackle role will be of upmost importance.