Tyler Smith named as a top candidate for the NFL’s newest award

Last week, the National Football League announced its awards ballot would have an extra addition this upcoming season. The league released that it would be debuting a new award to honor the league’s top offensive linemen.

The award, named The Protector of the Year by the NFL, will be decided annually by a panel that includes a number of former standout NFL linemen, according to NFL.com.

The competition to win this award will be pretty steep, as only one lineman in the entire league will walk away with the honor at season’s end. With that thought in mind, Pro Football Network released an article last week detailing one lineman from each team who could be a candidate to win the award in its first year.

For the Dallas Cowboys, PFN selected 24-year-old Tyler Smith. The two-time Pro Bowler was an obvious selection for the Cowboys, as Smith has been one of the most productive linemen in all of football since entering the league in 2022.

Here’s what PFN has to say about why Smith could be a serious candidate for the award.

11) Dallas Cowboys: Tyler Smith

After the retirement of Zack Martin, the Dallas Cowboys’ offensive line is Smith’s group now. He’s been a Pro Bowler each of the last two years and should be in the mix for Protector of the Year, especially if the Cowboys’ passing attack fares well with Dak Prescott throwing to the tandem of CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens.

While there is no denying that Smith is one of the most talented linemen in all of football, it will likely be an uphill battle for him, or any guard, to win the award over some of the league’s top tackles. Players like Lane Johnson, Penei Sewell, Rashawn Slater, and Trent Williams may have an edge over Smith strictly based on the position they play.

However, if guards are given legit consideration to win the award, there is no one in the league more primed to receive the honor than Smith. The 24-year-old continues to get better every season in the league and, as PFN mentioned, will be the anchor on Dallas’ offensive line that is looking to have a bounce-back year.

He may not end up taking home the award, but it seems like a good bet that Tyler Smith will be a serious candidate for the Protector of the Year honor every season moving forward.