There has been a cloud of mystery around the neck injury suffered by middle linebacker Leighton Vander Esch. What is known is that he missed the final seven games of the regular season due to it. Along the way, the Cowboys brass brought the discussion of whether or not it was a career-ending type of injury to the public, by proclaiming it wasn’t but indicating it had been discussed.
From there, it was a bunch of positive-yet-open-ended talk, the type that was last seen when the organization was discussing the recovery of fellow linebacker Jaylon Smith during the first year of his career. Now, there seems to be more concrete evidence of the severity of Vander Esch’s nerve issue ailment. According to ESPN’s Todd Archer, the second-year pro underwent surgery and the public prognosis is that he’ll be able to take part in the club’s offseason activities.
Dallas Cowboys linebacker Leighton Vander Esch underwent surgery on his neck on Tuesday with the expectation that he will be available during the offseason program, according to multiple sources. Vander Esch missed seven games with the injury. The hope… https://t.co/8VlpilXloI
— Todd Archer (@toddarcher) January 14, 2020
That still, of course, is very open ended. Technically, offseason activities span from the post-draft workouts to OTAs and minicamps, which wrap up in early-to-mid June. That’s about five months of recovery time.
With Dallas though, we’ve seen those proclamations also stretch into the summer and into training camp. The important takeaway from this is that the rest that they’ve giving him since October has not resulted in an improvement and now the club is looking to surgery to help the recovery.
The Cowboys drafted Vander Esch in the first round of the 2018 draft and he turned in a stellar performance as a rookie, earning a Pro Bowl nod and being second-team All-Pro. The Boise State product earned a cult following after being selected out of Boise State and earned the nickname the Wolf Hunter for his standout play and then he adopted a wolf call as his celebration.
Those celebrations were few and far between in 2019, though, as he played in just nine games and registered just 72 tackles.
With Sean Lee’s return up in the air and Joe Thomas a free agent, the club has little proven talent on the depth chart outside of Smith. If the team can’t be sure of Vander Esch’s status until after free agency and the draft, the club is likely going to have to make a move to shore up the position.
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