Before it even began in late July, the Dallas Cowboys' most important training camp battle of all was always going to be Tyler Guyton vs. Chuma Edoga for the starting left tackle job.
After all, having a bad left tackle is a recipe for disaster in the NFL and with Tyron Smith in the Big Apple, the Cowboys had to figure out what could've been a season-breaking question mark.
To kick things off, the Cowboys made Edoga the starter early in camp in a seeming effort to make Guyton "earn the job" as a rookie. That appears to be all over by now as there's no way the former Oklahoma Sooner isn't on that field with Dak Prescott and company for the first snap of Week 1's kickoff against the Myles Garrett-led Cleveland Browns.
For starters, Guyton dominated on Sunday against the Rams. Per PFF, he allowed no pressures in 13 pass blocking snaps while finishing second on the team in run blocking grade. During the short amount of playing time he got, Guyton displayed his power and athleticism by moving people out of the way in both aspects of the game. In Trey Lance's 16-yard escape early in the game, Guyton handled the inside move from his man on third-and-long, clearing the way for his QB to move the chains. Later, he blew up Rams LB Zach VanValkenburg as a pulling blocker to the left end.
But the biggest takeaway from Guyton's 21 snaps of play is that he did not lose a single rep. For someone whose biggest question mark throughout the draft process was how ready would he be on Day 1 after technique struggles surrounding his hand usage, that's a major win. It's not like Guyton faced a Defensive Player of the Year on Sunday like he will in Week 1, but he's off to a terrific start nevertheless.
In addition to what was under Guyton's control - his own play - Edoga was spotted wearing a boot after the game on Sunday. Although the severity of the injury remains unknown, ESPN's Todd Archer reported the toe injury has resulted in "some concern internally there."
Assuming Edoga is knocked out for the remainder of camp and the preseason or even a portion of it, no one else on the roster will be competing against the first-round rookie. It appears to be the Tyler Guyton show in Dallas now.
Growing pains should be expected by the fan base and there are no imminent All-Pro seasons headed Guyton's way just yet. But it certainly doesn't seem like Guyton will be out of his league when the regular season starts. The kid is ready.
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