Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
In Week 9, the play of Terence Steele helped end the chances of Dallas pulling an upset over the Philadelphia Eagles. In 57 pass blocking snaps he allowed 12 pressures, seven hurries and four sacks. The last one basically ending the game. He received a pass-blocking grade of only 15. A single player can’t hurt your team much more than that.
Going into that contest, the starting five offensive line combo of Tyron Smith, Tyler Smith, Tyler Biadasz, Zack Martin, and Steele had a total of 92 snaps together, 43rd ranked in the NFL . They didn’t have any continuity and it showed against that tough Philly defensive line. The OL allowed five sacks and could only muster 3.5 yards per rush attempt. That simply isn’t good enough against a team the caliber of Philadelphia.
The good news is that line now has 284 snaps together, which ranks 16th, and the unit continues to improve. Tyron Smith is the only left tackle to play 400 or more snaps and only allowed six pressures or fewer. Since the Eagles game, he has allowed just a single pressure in 129 pass-blocking snaps. Left guard Tyler Smith has played at an All-Pro level and has an overall PFF grade of 78 and a run-blocking grade of 89.7. Martin hasn’t been his all-world self, but is still one of the best guards in the league.
The key is that the two weaker spots in the line, Steele and Biadasz, have not wrecked any games with poor play since the loss to the Eagles. If that continues, and the three studs can remain as healthy as possible, the team won’t only be able to hang another 40 on the board against Seattle, but they will be legit Super Bowl contenders.
You can find Mike Crum on Twitter @cdpiglet or YouTube on the Across the Cowboys Podcast.
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