To put it plainly, the Dallas Cowboys were banking on Terence Steele’s improvement in 2024. The man they had signed to an $82,500,000 contract extension was coming off a down year. His recovery from offseason knee surgery was a slow burn, with Steele struggling to regain his pre-injury form. 2024 was to be a full year removed, making a bounce-back campaign a fairly logical plan.
In some ways Steele achieved those 2024 expectations. Of the qualifying offensive tackles with at least 900 offensive snaps last season, Steele ranked in the top 10 in run-blocking grades. With a 79 percent run-block win rate, he ranked ninth in the NFL overall. His ability to pulverize opponents on the move made him a strong weapon for the Cowboys on the edge in the running game.
In other ways Steele fell well short of expectations. With an ultra-raw rookie prospect manning the OT spot opposite Steele, the Cowboys needed their veteran right tackle to handle his business in pass protection. Unfortunately, Steele struggled as did his counterpart Tyler Guyton, and pass protection on the edges was a concern throughout the 2024 season.
Nick Bosa continues wreaking havoc on Terence Steele tonight. pic.twitter.com/VSE9lzAc6C
— All-22 (@All22_PFF) October 28, 2024Did Steele meet his expectations?
As a pass protector, only one OT in the entire NFL graded more poorly than Steele last season, rendering his dominance in the running game almost a moot point.
What are Steele’s expectations in 2025?
At this stage in Steele’s career it’s safe to say he’s never going to be a decent pass protector. He’s consistently graded poorly, even before that aforementioned knee injury, and at the age of 28 this summer, that’s not likely to change.
What the Cowboys need from Steele is to continue to dominate as a run blocker and just approach average levels in pass protection. He can’t be the second-worst pass protector in the NFL again or the Cowboys offense will grind to a halt. Guyton will still need his share of pass protecting assistance at LT so this is something Steele will have to remedy himself.
Expectations have been lowered for Steele, but shear need make the expectations still likely to be out of his reach. If Steele can grow to be average in pass protection it would constitute a wild success.
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys invested $82.5 million in Terence Steele, waiting on return
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