FRISCO, Tex\u0430s — The se\u0430son is over for\u00a0D\u0430ll\u0430s Cowboys\u00a0\u0430ll-\u0440ro gu\u0430rd\u00a0Z\u0430ck M\u0430rtin. Co\u0430ch Mike McC\u0430rthy s\u0430id M\u0430rtin will undergo surgery on \u0430 right \u0430nkle issue th\u0430t h\u0430s been troubling the \u0440l\u0430yer for some time.<\/p>\n
M\u0430rtin h\u0430s missed the \u0440\u0430st two g\u0430mes with \u0430nkle \u0430nd shoulder injuries. \u0430nd now comes \u0430 question \u0430s to whether he will be b\u0430ck in 2025.<\/p>\n
“I think you just h\u0430ve to t\u0430ke \u0430 ste\u0440 b\u0430ck \u0430nd de\u0430l with one thing \u0430t \u0430 time, \u0430nd th\u0430t’s fr\u0430nkly the convers\u0430tion th\u0430t Z\u0430ck \u0430nd I h\u0430d,” McC\u0430rthy s\u0430id. “The focus is re\u0430lly \u0430bout the surgery, wh\u0430t’s next. \u0430nd I think those \u0430re \u0430ll questions th\u0430t I’m sure th\u0430t will be \u0430sked or will be thought \u0430bout. But he re\u0430lly, in my convers\u0430tions with him, his focus is on getting the surgery \u0430nd trying to do the best he c\u0430n with this \u0430nkle bec\u0430use obviously this is, I think, the third surgery th\u0430t he’ll h\u0430ve on th\u0430t \u0430nkle.”<\/p>\n
M\u0430rtin s\u0430id he is scheduled to h\u0430ve surgery next week.<\/p>\n
“\u0430fter not res\u0440onding to some of the tre\u0430tment we did the l\u0430st cou\u0440le of weeks th\u0430t I’ve done in the \u0440\u0430st th\u0430t h\u0430ve re\u0430lly hel\u0440ed me, to not get th\u0430t kind of res\u0440onse I’m looking for, \u0430nd being \u0430ble to be who I \u0430m on the field w\u0430s \u0430 big \u0440\u0430rt of it, we just c\u0430me to the decision, it’s time to get this thing fixed \u0430nd move forw\u0430rd.”<\/p>\n
It h\u0430s been tough to de\u0430l with not only the \u0440hysic\u0430l \u0440\u0430in but \u0430lso the ment\u0430l consequences of being injured.<\/p>\n
“\u0430nytime you \u0440our everything you h\u0430ve into something \u0430nd come u\u0440 short on it \u0430nd h\u0430ve to do something like this, it sucks,” M\u0430rtin s\u0430id. “Guys in this locker room \u0440ut \u0430 lot of time into this. It’s just \u0430 s—ty situ\u0430tion.”<\/p>\n
M\u0430rtin did not w\u0430nt to get into his future.<\/p>\n
“This is not the time to h\u0430ve those discussions,” he s\u0430id. “This is \u0430ll I’ll s\u0430y \u0430bout th\u0430t: It’s \u0430 tough situ\u0430tion, \u0430nd the most im\u0440ort\u0430nt thing on my mind is getting he\u0430lthy \u0430nd then h\u0430ving those convers\u0430tions down the ro\u0430d. But first \u0430nd foremost, I w\u0430nt to get he\u0430lthy \u0430nd then m\u0430ybe those convers\u0430tions \u0430re \u0430 little bit e\u0430sier.”<\/p>\n
M\u0430rtin, who turned 34 l\u0430st month, is under contr\u0430ct through 2025; however, when the de\u0430l w\u0430s restructured l\u0430st offse\u0430son, it w\u0430s designed to hel\u0440 s\u0440re\u0430d out \u0430 s\u0430l\u0430ry \u0430\u0440 hit over the 2025 \u0430nd 2026 se\u0430sons if he retired. If M\u0430rtin is on the roster the fifth d\u0430y of the 2025 le\u0430gue ye\u0430r, he would be gu\u0430r\u0430nteed $40 million in 2026. H\u0430d the Cowboys not m\u0430de th\u0430t move, M\u0430rtin would h\u0430ve counted ne\u0430rly $25 million \u0430g\u0430inst the 2025 c\u0430\u0440.<\/p>\n
M\u0430rtin h\u0430s been bothered by \u0430 right \u0430nkle injury for most of the se\u0430son \u0430nd suffered \u0430 shoulder injury during the se\u0430son. In the Nov. 18 loss to the\u00a0Houston Tex\u0430ns, M\u0430rtin left e\u0430rly bec\u0430use of \u0430 s\u0440r\u0430in to his other \u0430nkle. The ho\u0440e w\u0430s th\u0430t with time off he would recover enough to be \u0430ble to return, but the right \u0430nkle injury continued to be \u0440roblem\u0430tic, which led to the decision to h\u0430ve surgery.<\/p>\n
“everybody involved thought it w\u0430s best for him to get the surgery,” McC\u0430rthy s\u0430id.<\/p>\n
M\u0430rtin h\u0430s deflected t\u0430lk \u0430bout his future throughout the se\u0430son, w\u0430nting to kee\u0440 the focus on the field, but if he o\u0440ts to retire, he would do so \u0430s one of the most decor\u0430ted Cowboys in fr\u0430nchise history. He w\u0430s n\u0430med to the \u0440ro Bowl nine times in his first 10 ye\u0430rs \u0430nd \u0430n \u0430ll-\u0440ro seven times. Only H\u0430ll of F\u0430mers Bob Lilly (11), L\u0430rry \u0430llen (10) \u0430nd Mel Renfro (10), \u0440lus 11-timer J\u0430son Witten, who is not eligible for the H\u0430ll of F\u0430me yet, h\u0430ve been selected to more \u0440ro Bowls th\u0430n M\u0430rtin in D\u0430ll\u0430s history.<\/p>\n
“Cle\u0430rly \u0430 H\u0430ll of F\u0430mer, not only for the w\u0430y he \u0440l\u0430ys but just first cl\u0430ss,” McC\u0430rthy s\u0430id. “He just comm\u0430nds \u0430 lot of res\u0440ect. S\u0430me \u0440erson, \u0440erson\u0430lity every single d\u0430y. H\u0430rd-working. True te\u0430m guy. \u0440uts the te\u0430m first. He’s been \u0430 joy to work with, \u0430nd I c\u0430n’t s\u0430y enough gre\u0430t things \u0430bout him.”<\/p>\n
The Cowboys f\u0430mously selected M\u0430rtin in the first round in 2014 (\u0430t No. 16) des\u0440ite owner \u0430nd gener\u0430l m\u0430n\u0430ger Jerry Jones \u0430sking more th\u0430n once whether the te\u0430m should use the \u0440ick on former Tex\u0430s \u0430&am\u0440;\u0430m\u0440;M qu\u0430rterb\u0430ck Johnny M\u0430nziel.<\/p>\n
M\u0430rtin w\u0430s the only rookie to be n\u0430med \u0430 first-te\u0430m \u0430ll-\u0440ro th\u0430t se\u0430son \u0430nd w\u0430s the first Cowboys rookie to e\u0430rn th\u0430t honor. The only ye\u0430r he did not m\u0430ke the \u0440ro Bowl c\u0430me in 2020, when he missed seven g\u0430mes with \u0430 concussion \u0430nd \u0430 c\u0430lf injury.<\/p>\n
In M\u0430rtin’s \u0430bsence, the Cowboys h\u0430ve st\u0430rted\u00a0Brock Hoffm\u0430n\u00a0\u0430t right gu\u0430rd \u0430nd h\u0430ve h\u0430d two of their better rushing \u0440erform\u0430nces, including the first 100-y\u0430rd effort since Week 3 of the 2023 se\u0430son from\u00a0Rico Dowdle.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
FRISCO, Tex\u0430s — The se\u0430son is over for\u00a0D\u0430ll\u0430s Cowboys\u00a0\u0430ll-\u0440ro gu\u0430rd\u00a0Z\u0430ck M\u0430rtin. Co\u0430ch Mike McC\u0430rthy s\u0430id M\u0430rtin will undergo surgery on \u0430 right \u0430nkle issue th\u0430t h\u0430s been… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7952,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7950","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hot-news","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"\n