Dallas Cowboys OL Zack Martin to have season-ending ankle surgery. Is retirement next?
The Dallas Cowboys injury bug continues into December, as head coach Mike McCarthy announced in his Thursday press conference that seven-time All-Pro guard Zack Martin will have season-ending ankle surgery.
Martin, who is in the final year of his contract with the team at 34 years old, has contemplated the possibility of retirement at the conclusion of the season.
“I’m not saying 100%, but I think it’s definitely in the realm of possibilities,” Martin said in June during the team’s OTA workouts. “And that’s one thing I don’t want to do. For myself, I don’t want to be thinking, ‘Oh, this is it. This is it.’ I want to stay in the moment, and I want to play the best that I can play at this point and be the best right guard this team needs on a weekly basis. And then after the season, we’ll figure out what’s going on.”
McCarthy said that he had a conversation with Martin this week, and the future Hall of Famer will focus on his surgery and recovery before making a determination on his potential future in the NFL.
“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.”
Martin has missed each of the last two games after re-aggravating an ankle injury in the team’s loss to the Houston Texans on Nov. 18. The expectation was that the team would get him back for the upcoming matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday night, but tests early in the week paved the conclusion that having surgery was the best route. It will be the third surgery that Martin has had on his ankle.
The team will turn to Brock Hoffman and T.J. Bass at right guard for the remaining five games, as each have garnered starting experience in the last two seasons. Hoffman has filled in for Martin over the last two weeks and has not allowed one pressure on the quarterback.
“Those guys have worked hard,” McCarthy said. “Brock’s done a nice job in there. T.J., I thought he played well in Washington. I think that the biggest thing for him is to be consistent, T.J. I thought Brock has done a really nice job, brings an edge to us.”
As the Cowboys possibly turn to the post-Zack Martin era, his impact on the team over his 11 seasons is fresh on everyone’s mind as he enters a critical recovery toward the future of his playing career.
“Clearly a Hall of Famer,” McCarthy said. “Not only for the way he plays but just first class. 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.”
This story was originally published December 5, 2024 at 12:14 PM.
