FRISCO, Texas — Tyler Smith is doing very well in his recovery from thumb surgery, Jerry Jones said Tuesday, and the Dallas Cowboys are staying on a four-week prognosis for the left guard. The Cowboys owner and general manager made his weekly appearance on Shan & RJ on 105.3 The Fan two days after a 37-20 win over the Washington Commanders at AT&T Stadium.
Smith had surgery Sept. 8 in Los Angeles to repair a torn ligament in his left thumb, and Dallas placed him on injured reserve the next day. Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer put his timeline at four to six weeks when he announced the surgery and named T.J. Bass the starter in his place. Smith has been voted to three Pro Bowls.
“We should stay on the prognosis of four weeks, and he’s doing very well. He would do very well. He’s very smart and very conscientious, so he’s doing well,” Jones said.
Jerry Jones Wants More From Dallas Cowboys Run Game
Dallas ran 21 times for 66 yards against Washington, and Javonte Williams finished with 12 carries for 30 yards. A 25-yard Williams run in the fourth quarter was wiped out by holding. On Monday night, the Los Angeles Rams beat the New York Giants 28-6 and outgained them 481 yards to 182, eight days after the Giants beat Dallas 28-20.
“I know that if you saw that game last night and just saw the Rams open it up on the New York team, it made you say, boy, I wish we’d opened it up more in New York. That is the trick,” Jones explained. “That New York Giants team is very capable of shutting you down on the run game. And having said that, yes, I would like for the run game to have looked or have been executed better, but we’re going to get there. The pieces are in place to have a better running game. Let’s put it like that.”
Jerry Jones Says Giants Took Away Cowboys Run Game In Week 1
KaVontae Turpin returned 4 kickoffs for 122 yards Sunday. He carried the ball once, for 1 yard. CeeDee Lamb caught 8 passes for 153 yards and 2 touchdowns.
“I think a lot of it is the Giants had a big emphasis on it, and we didn’t throw them out of it, so to speak. We’ve got to put the threat of moving that ball through the air to get some running room, but it’s chicken and egg,” Jones said. “But still, that is an area that I think all of us should feel better that we’re going to have some more improvement. Our running backs are really outstanding. I really like our assortment of what we can bring out there.”
“We have got to get Turp going a little bit in that running game, get Lamb back there a little bit in that running game,” Jones continued. “We can do some things that really give us some improvement.”
Dallas plays the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday at Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro. Kickoff is 3:25 p.m. CT on CBS.
