FRISCO, Texas -- Tyler Guyton knew something was wrong; he just didn't know what.
The Dallas Cowboys' starting left tackle had a throbbing pain in his right knee after a collision in training camp practice on July 28 in Oxnard, California. He feared the worst -- that his second season was over before it could really begin.
"It was a lot of highs and lows, but I just made sure I kept my focus on the right things ... like talking to the Lord when I was in that situation," Guyton said when asked what he was thinking in the aftermath. "I was asking for forgiveness, and just for the opportunity to be able to go play and this to not be my reality for this season."
Dr. Daniel Cooper, the head team physician for the Cowboys, initially feared Guyton tore the ACL in his knee. Cooper has done enough on-field tests in his years as a renowned knee specialist to know, but to be sure, Guyton went for an MRI.
The imaging showed the ACL was intact, but he had suffered a broken bone in his knee.
"I don't think he's a guy who misses calls like that, so I was extremely relieved to hear that I didn't tear my ACL," Guyton said.
Guyton isn't sure if he will be available for the Sept. 4 season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles, but he has started some on-field resistance training.
"I want to play in every game," Guyton said, "but I'm going to leave that up to them."
It beats what he initially feared last month.
"My prayers were answered," he said.
O captain! My captain!
Former head coach Mike McCarthy did not believe in naming season-long captains. He believed the best way to empower each player as a leader was to have different captains each week.
Brian Schottenheimer, McCarthy's successor, feels otherwise. After the final cuts, players will vote on season-long captains. If this was on ESPN BET, Dak Prescott would be off the board since he will undoubtedly be selected. Schottenheimer will rotate an additional captain each week for "someone that's deserving, that's being a great teammate, [and] performing well."
Why have season-long captains?
"That's the core of your leadership of your team that's going to be voted on by the players. It's not going to be voted on by the coaches," Schottenheimer said. "They know who they want speaking, representing them.
"There's a lot of different ways to do it, and I feel it means something to me to have the 'C' on your chest if you've been voted that by your teammates. I think it's pretty cool to be recognized to say, 'Hey, I was the captain in 2025 of the Dallas Cowboys.'"
Decisions, decisions
My final 53-man roster projection that came out after Friday's preseason finale against the Atlanta Falcons was a difficult task, but I wanted to explain some decisions further.
I went with six-year veteran Miles Sanders over Phil Mafah for the final running back spot, in part because a tailback spot with Javonte Williams and two rookies (Jaydon Blue and Mafah) seemed awfully inexperienced. Of Sanders' $1.17 million base salary, $1.03 million is already guaranteed. For as well as seventh-rounder Mafah has performed, I get the feeling a lot of teams would rather keep their own runner whom they saw all offseason and training camp.
Next is Princeton Fant at tight end. The Cowboys love tight ends, and I realize fullback Hunter Luepke will also play there, but Brevyn Spann-Ford has missed a ton of practice time with a high ankle sprain to be ready for Week 1. Plus, Fant can be a core special teamer.
Why didn't I do the "wink-wink, nod-nod you'll be on the team anyway" with long-snapper Trent Sieg and punter Bryan Anger? It wasn't possible to release and re-sign them with the guaranteed money they received this year for returning to Dallas on an extension. So, those decisions came down to quarterback Will Grier, cornerback C.J. Goodwin and offensive lineman Saahdiq Charles.
Of course, by Tuesday's cut-down day, this might all be moot.