From kids to men: Dallas Cowboys rookies Tyler Guyton, Cooper Beebe look the part

CLEVELAND — Turn to page 16 of Mike McCarthy’s imaginary coaching manual. There, you’ll find a section on rookies.

“Yup,” the Dallas Cowboys coach said earlier this week jokingly. “[It’ll say] play these guys Week 1.”

In case it doesn’t convey over text, McCarthy was being sarcastic. Starting rookies is usually done out of necessity, not choice. And in the NFL landscape, where the salary cap rules, often times teams will have no choice but to play their rookies immediately. McCarthy said he was confident that rookie left tackle Tyler Guyton and third round center Cooper Beebe, among the others, could play. But was he comfortable with it heading into a challenge against the Cleveland Browns?

McCarthy said no before the game. In hindsight, after the Cowboys beat the Browns 33-17, maybe he should’ve been comfortable.

It wasn’t perfect, but Guyton and Beebe played well in their NFL debuts. Especially considering the competition. The Browns had one of the stingiest defenses in the NFL last year. They had the reigning Defensive Player of the Year in Myles Garrett — a star that’s made even the most talented and seasoned veteran offensive tackles look foolish.

Guyton and the rest of the Cowboys offensive line held up well. They allowed three sacks. Quarterback Dak Prescott was hit just four times. The running game averaged over four yards per carry.

Not bad for a group that was starting two rookies.

“Those two kids,” Prescott said before stopping himself, “actually, guys, because I do not want to call them kids. Two men. Each and every day they grow more and more.”

Maybe we shouldn’t have been surprised by how fast Guyton and Beebe grew up.

McCarthy has been hinting for a while that this rookie class might be something. Even after rookie minicamp he was optimistic. He admitted that he feels like he says the same thing every season about rookie classes: that they could be the best one he’s ever coached. This class though, he said, was different.

It was evident in Guyton’s decision to move up to the Dallas area the day after he left the facility for his introduction. It was noticeable in Beebe’s commitment to snapping to anyone who was available, including his mom, Tamara. It was displayed when both showed up to training camp as backups, only to leave as starters.

“Really, since they’ve come in, they’ve had the right attitude in terms of understanding the roles they were stepping into,” Cowboys left guard Tyler Smith said. “The roles they want to dominate. They want to come in, help the team, do what they need to do to be successful, and they’ve been true professionals.”

That wasn’t by accident. Beebe said he and Guyton would quiz each other about the offensive playbook. Not only did he and Guyton have to be physically ready to potentially start, but they had to be mentally ready, too.

“It was just a constant grind,” Beebe said. “I think the big thing for me was the mental aspect of it, just making sure I’m out there running the show, making sure dudes are going the right way … seeing the different looks and the different pressures.”

Beebe and Guyton saw a lot of that on Sunday. The Cowboys also saw something important out of them.

Beebe didn’t allow any sacks — he said a couple bull rushes he faced were pretty difficult — but Guyton allowed one in the second quarter. Garrett got to the edge, ripped through Guyton’s reach and had a strip sack of Prescott. It was the first time Guyton was beat on Sunday. Against the reigning defensive player of the year, it could’ve had a snowball effect.

Prescott said that Guyton came back to the huddle after he was beat. He owned it, Prescott said, even telling Prescott that it was his fault. Prescott responded by telling him to move on to the next one.

“And he does,” Prescott said. “He wiped the slate clean, moved on and fought hard tonight.”

Guyton and Beebe not only fought, but they also looked like they belonged. That’s no easy task against that defense, especially for two guys that were playing new positions.

But Guyton and Beebe were also selected high for a reason. The Cowboys headed into the draft knowing they would need a tackle and perhaps a starting center; they identified both Guyton and Beebe to fill those needs.

Before the game, Beebe said his mom texted him, just like she does ever game. She said the normal things: she wished him luck, encouraged him and told him she loved him. She also said something specific for his rookie debut.

“Hey,” Beebe recalled his mom writing. “You’ve been doing this for years. Just a different stage.”

Beebe treated it as such. Guyton did as well.

“Two guys I’m super proud of,” Prescott said. “I’m looking forward to many more games with them.”

Maybe McCarthy should add an addendum to page 16.