Future Hall of Fame left tackle Tyron Smith will likely sign with a new team in NFL free agency this month.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport shared on Saturday that the Dallas Cowboys are unlikely to re-sign Smith ahead of free agency, which would lead the longtime left tackle to a new team.
While Smith has struggled with injuries over the last few seasons, he played in 13 games in 2023 and still logged an impressive 83.8 Pro Football Focus score for his reps.
For a contending team with a need at left tackle or a franchise flushed with cap space and likely to develop a rookie quarterback, Smith would be an excellent fit. We’ve found five teams that more than fit the bill.
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The Chiefs make the most sense out of any team on this list, as Kansas City offers Smith both an immediate starting job and his best chance of any opportunity in the NFL to contend for a Super Bowl ring.
While the Chiefs would want a solid swing tackle in case Smith got hurt, he’d be a phenomenal fit to replace tackle Donovan Smith if Kansas City wants to upgrade the position.
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The Jets will have to prioritize left tackle over all other positions this offseason as quarterback Aaron Rodgers plans his return from an Achilles injury. After all, Mekhi Becton and Duane Brown are headed into free agency, and neither are locks to return to New York.
Getting Smith in to protect Rodgers would be a huge boost for a New York team that struggled mightily on offense without the future Hall of Famer in the lineup. You have to think Rodgers would feel much better about his return to the field if he had Smith watching out for him at left tackle.
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While Alaric Jackson has stepped up admirably for the Rams as their most recent left tackle, he’ll be a restricted free agent this offseason. If Los Angeles wants to push in the chips to maximize on Matthew Stafford’s championship window, it might want to upgrade the position with Smith and let Jackson walk.
It’d make more sense from a long-term perspective to keep developing Jackson after his recent success, but it’d be a huge boost immediately to put Smith in on the left side of the Rams offensive line for 2024 and perhaps beyond. This might be too tantalizing a possibility for L.A. to pass up.
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We don’t know who the next Patriots quarterback will be, but we do know that the team has a clear need at left tackle if Trent Brown leaves in free agency.
New England might prioritize a younger player to pair with a possible rookie quarterback, or it might try to throw a massive contract at someone like Smith who the team could count on to keep any quarterback upright.
If the team does go after a rookie, it might not be a bad idea to see if Smith would be interested in playing in Foxborough. It’d protect that quarterback’s development with one of the best tackles in the league when healthy.
Geof