Dallas' best news on Monday night had nothing to do with an emphatic win over the Detroit Lions.
It came from these three words uttered by left tackle Tyron Smith after the game: "I'm all right," which he told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram after exiting the contest early with a right knee injury.
Smith got cut right at his already-injured knee while following a play downfield. He was subbed out for the team's swing tackle, Emmett Cleary.
While many have applauded head coach Jason Garrett for his handling of the situation, the moment Smith went down briefly illustrated his worst nightmare. As many have said leading up to these final two Cowboys games, Garrett is in a no-win situation. He is stuck perpetually behind one school of thought which says star players should not rest in order to maintain camaraderie and cohesion, and another which points out the NFL's 100 percent injury rate.
Smith will be fine and Dallas escaped without any major issues. Ezekiel Elliott got to carry the ball 12 times and he still gained 80 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns. Darren McFadden came in for some of the dirty work.
Throughout the night, though, there were some cringe-worthy moments. An example: In the first half, quarterback Dak Prescott broke the pocket and tried to scramble for a first down before getting hit hard by Lions linebacker Tahir Whitehead.
Love or hate the Dallas Cowboys, I think everyone is rooting for Sunday's meaningless game against the Philadelphia Eagles to go smoothly. This offense is the perfect compilation of established veterans and budding young superstars. I think we should be applauding Garrett for not packing them in bubble wrap for the remainder of the season even with the ever-present risks.
