As unfortunate as the 12-10 defeat was to the New Orleans Saints Sunday night, perhaps a bigger issue is the injury that Tyron Smith suffered late in the game. Per Joe Trahan of channel 8 WFAA in Dallas-Fort Worth, Tyron Smith left the locker room in a walking boot and team Owner and General Manager described the injury as a high ankle sprain.

#dallascowboys LT Tyron Smith left the locker room with a walking boot on his right leg. Jerry Jones called it a high ankle sprain.#DALvsNO pic.twitter.com/0zrwSPM3rN

— Joe Trahan (@JoeTrahan) September 30, 2019

Smith was lost on the final drive of the game when the pressure that got to Dak Prescott forced him to the ground and rolled up on Tyron Smith’s right ankle. He immediately had to come out of the game and was replaced by Cameron Fleming at left tackle, who gave up a quarterback hit on his very first play of the game.

If Smith misses time, which is almost a foregone conclusion at this point as high ankle sprains are generally a 2-4 week recovery time, it’s a huge loss for the Dallas Cowboys. We all remember back to 2017 when the Dallas Cowboys were without Tyron Smith for three games that season. In those three games, the Dallas Cowboys averaged just seven points per game in games against the Atlanta Falcons and the Philadelphia Eagles twice.

The Dallas Cowboys have prepared for this scenario with Cameron Fleming, but they’ll definitely suffer a drop off in play at the left tackle position with Smith likely to be out for several weeks.

Though nobody will cry for the Dallas Cowboys and the injury they suffered, no Tyron Smith puts a serious damper on the start of the regular season. Only one game up on the Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Giants in the NFC East, they can’t afford any more setbacks if they want to maintain their hold on the division lead.

The Cowboys will have to rebound quickly against the Green Bay Packers, whose defense has looked much improved to start the season and will put the left side of the Dallas Cowboys defense to the test next Sunday.

Kellen Moore and his offense will be put to the test without one of its best players. Hopefully Tyron Smith won’t be out for very long, because the Cowboys’ season very much depends on his presence along the offensive line.