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Todd Archer, ESPN Staff WriterDec 5, 2024, 12:44 PM ET
- Todd Archer is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the Dallas Cowboys. Archer has covered the NFL since 1997 and Dallas since 2003. He joined ESPN in 2010. You can follow him on Twitter at @toddarcher.
FRISCO, Texas — The season is over for Dallas Cowboys All-Pro guard Zack Martin. Coach Mike McCarthy said Martin will undergo surgery on a right ankle issue that has been troubling for some time.
Martin has missed the last two games with ankle and shoulder injuries. And now comes a question as to whether he will be back in 2025.
Martin, who turned 34 last month, is scheduled to be a free agent and the team re-worked his contract in the offseason to help spread out a salary-cap hit over the 205 and ’26 seasons. Had the Cowboys not made that move, Martin would have counted nearly $25 million against the 2025 cap.
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Martin has been bothered by a right ankle injury for most of the season and suffered a shoulder injury during the season. In the Nov. 18 loss to the Houston Texans, Martin left early because of a sprain to his other ankle. The hope was with time off he would recover enough to be able to return, but the right ankle injury continued to be problematic and led to the decision to have surgery.
Martin has deflected talk about his future throughout the season, wanting to keep the focus on the field, but if he opts to retire 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), 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 Dallas history.
The Cowboys famously selected Martin in the first round in 2014 (No. 16 overall) despite owner and general manager Jerry Jones asking more than once if the team should use the pick on former Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel.
Martin was the only rookie to be named a first-team All Pro and the first Cowboys’ rookie to ever earn that honor. The only year he did not make the Pro Bowl came in 2020 when he missed seven games with a concussion and a calf injury.
In Martin’s absence, the Cowboys have started Brock Hoffman at right guard and have had two of their better rushing performances, including the first 100-yard effort since Week 3 of the 2023 season from Rico Dowdle.
