This could be the end of a significant era in Cowboy history. Nine-time Pro Bowler, Zack Martin will miss the rest of the season for the Dallas Cowboys. The perennial All-Pro will undergo season-ending surgery, according to coach Mike McCarthy, to repair an ankle injury suffered two weeks ago in a loss CJ Stroud and the Houston Texans.
Martin has missed the past two games with ankle and shoulder injuries. And now comes the hard-hitting ‘Sixty-four Thousand Dollar Question’ if he will be back in 2025.
“I think you just have to take a step back and deal with one thing at a time and that’s frankly the conversation that Zack and I had,” McCarthy said. “The focus is really about the surgery, what’s next. And I think those are all questions that I’m sure that will be asked or will be thought about. But he really, in my conversations with him, his focus is on getting the surgery and trying to do the best he can with this ankle because obviously this is I think the third surgery that he’ll have on that ankle.”
Martin, who is getting long in the teeth, turned 34 in November, and has dealt with and fought through a variety of injuries this season, from his back to his shoulder and now his ankle, but it is the latter that was his downfall and ultimately ended his season prematurely.
The news is even more heartbreaking because it comes only hours after Martin learned that he is the team’s nominee for the Walter Payton Man of Year Award.
“He’s gonna be missed,” said McCarthy. “We’re not gonna replace Zack Martin, by any means. … He brings so much to the team and the team culture. We all recognize what kind of player he’s been here in Dallas, but the type of person he is — people gravitate to him. His leadership, he’ll definitely be missed in that area.”
Martin dealt with injuries to both ankles this season, but it is the one on his right side that needs fixing.
Embed from Getty ImagesPending questions surrounding the future of the no doubt first-ballot Hall of Famer will not be answered anytime soon, as the Cowboys attempt to turn the page this season toward players like Brock Hoffman and T.J. Bass at right guard.
Sitting at two games under .550, 5-7 and facing Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday night with only four games remaining after that in the regular season, the Cowboys have been bitten by the injury bug and Martin, the usual ironman, was not immune.
Martin has dodged questions about his future throughout the season, wanting to keep the focus on the field, but if he chooses to hang up his cleats and walk away from the game, he would do so as one of the most decorated Cowboys in franchise history. He was named to the Pro Bowl nine times in his first 10 years and an All-Pro seven times. Only Hall of Famers Bob Lilly (11), the late Larry Allen (10) and Mel Renfro (10), plus 11-timer Jason Witten, who is not eligible for the Hall of Fame yet, have been selected to more Pro Bowls than Martin in Cowboy history.
“Clearly a Hall of Famer, not only for the way he plays but just first class,” McCarthy said. “He just commands a lot of respect. Same person, personality every single day. Hard working. True team guy. Puts the team first. He’s been a joy to work with and I can’t say enough great things about him.”
