FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys turned away trade inquiries for guard T.J. Bass during the offseason and again at roster cutdowns, telling teams he was off limits, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported this week. Bass now steps into the starting lineup at left guard.
Tyler Smith went on injured reserve Wednesday, a day after surgery to repair a torn ligament in his left thumb. The designation requires Smith to miss at least four games. Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer put the absence at four to six weeks on Monday.
The earliest Smith can return is Oct. 8 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a Thursday game on a short week.
Dallas coveted Bass for a stretch like this one, Schottenheimer said Monday.
“A ton of confidence,” Schottenheimer said. “Tyler Smith’s a great player, but we feel really confident in T.J. and he’s put great film on here. He’s played next to [center] Cooper Beebe, he’s played next to [left tackle Tyler] Guyton, so that’s nothing new. The communication and all this stuff. He actually gets a ton of reps with those guys anyways because we manage [snaps] in some areas.”
Through camp, Bass took regular first-team reps on days when the staff pulled back Smith’s workload. Dallas’ unofficial depth chart released Tuesday still listed Smith at left guard, with Bass second there and second at center.
T.J. Bass’ Path From Undrafted Free Agent To Starter
Dallas signed Bass out of Oregon as an undrafted free agent in May 2023. He has appeared in 48 games with 10 starts, and 5 of those starts came last season.
Bass, 27, grew up in Deming, Washington, and played two seasons at Butte College before transferring to Oregon. He was a first-team All-Pac-12 pick in 2021 and 2022.
This offseason, the Cowboys tendered Bass at the second-round level as a restricted free agent. His 2026 cap figure is $5,767,000, according to Spotrac. Bass played in 16 games in 2025 and 48 over three seasons, all with Dallas.
Dallas went through training camp and the preseason without a major injury before Smith’s thumb forced the decision. Smith carries a $10,302,300 cap figure this season.
Tyler Smith’s Injury And The Dallas Cowboys’ Roster Moves
Grip strength matters for an offensive lineman, Schottenheimer said Monday. Smith had played through the thumb since training camp before the club decided on surgery.
“It’s over time and he’s such a tough guy,” Schottenheimer explained. “I can’t say enough about Tyler. Just the toughness, but at the end of the day we can’t pinpoint when it happened. It’s just one of those deals that, at the end of the day, made the decision that we all did that the best thing is to get in front of this thing and it’s a long season, so let’s go get it fixed.”
Smith went 24th overall to Dallas in 2022. He has made the Pro Bowl in all three seasons at left guard and was a second-team All-Pro in 2023. Across four seasons, he has never missed more than three games in a year.
On Wednesday, Dallas also signed guard Nick Leverett to the active roster from the practice squad and signed guard Laken Tomlinson to the practice squad, the team announced. Smith is the third Cowboys player moved to the designated-to-return list this season.
Dallas opens Sunday at the New York Giants. Kickoff at MetLife Stadium is 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC
