Report: Former Cowboys OL Tyron Smith to sign with New York Jets

Veteran offensive tackle Tyron Smith is set to sign with the New York Jets, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported. He just wrapped up his 12th season with the Dallas Cowboys, and his last major contract was an eight-year deal for $96.5 million.

The Cowboys coaches kept Smith on a “Hall-of-Fame” practice schedule for the majority of the season. Though he played very little during the week, it resulted in great play from the vet on game days. Minor injuries caused him to miss time still, however, and he lost out on some of his playing time incentives. He started 13 out of the 13 games he played this year.

The former first-round draft pick out of USC was reliable when he started as evidenced by his first All-Pro selection since the 2016 season. His second-team selection gives him five All-Pro honors in his 13-year career. Since joining the team in 2011, Smith has played all of his career with Dallas.

Head coach Mike McCarthy called Smith’s performance this season his best since he took over the team in 2020. With him at left tackle, the Cowboys offensive line gave up 39 sacks this season on QB Dak Prescott.

“Biggest thing for Tyron, we talked about the path of this season, this is clearly his best season that I’ve experienced with him,” McCarthy said at his end-of-year press conference. “He felt really good about that. Just the fact that he’s not going into the offseason with surgeries is a big plus.”

More on the 2024 NFL offseason, free agency

The NFL 2024 calendar year begins at 4 p.m. ET on March 13. At that time, contracts running through 2023 officially run out, making those players free agents. Prior to the beginning of free agency, teams will have a chance to designate one franchise or transition tag player, starting on Feb. 20 at 4 p.m. ET and ending on March 5. Beginning March 11 through March 13 teams can enter into a legal negotiation with players who are will become unrestricted free agents.

In addition to NFL free agency, the new year also marks the beginning of all trades being made official by the league office. April 19 marks the deadline to sign restricted free agents to offer sheets. On April 24, the deadline for teams to match restricted free agent offers sheets hits. Following the restricted free agent deadline follows the 2024 NFL Draft, which runs from April 25-27.