Zack Martin is at a crossroads in his Dallas Cowboys career. The 34-year-old guard has had a Hall of Fame worthy career since joining the Cowboys in 2014. He’s been selected to nine Pro Bowls and earned seven First-Team All-Pro (2x Second-Team) throughout his 11 seasons. The only time he didn’t qualify for one or the other were in his injury shortened 2020 and 2024 campaigns.

With more Pro Bowl appearances than career holding penalties, Martin is undeniably one of the all-time greats. Despite this, the Cowboys legend may be on his way out of Dallas.

Martin is coming off an uncharacteristically pedestrian season. Whether it was age or injury that was the primary cause for the decline is difficult to say. But Martin didn’t look his usual self, and it impacted the Cowboys offensive line in a rather significant way.

After reworking his contract before the 2023 season, void years were affixed on the back end beginning in 2025 (per Over the Cap). It has given both parties an out in the contract should either side decide to turn the page on this dominant era in Cowboys history.

Martin has made over $111 million over his career in Dallas, but there’s over $27 million remaining to be allocated to the books over the next few seasons.

The Cowboys have been in the business of turning pages on the offensive line as of late. Last season they parted with great left tackle Tyron Smith and a young veteran in center Tyler Biadasz. This season they rebuilt their coaching staff and look to mix up the blocking scheme. Saving money has been the name of the game and gambling big dollars on a veteran who may be on the decline is something the front office wants to avoid. But can the Cowboys survive the loss?

To those who were paying attention in 2024 the answer is probably a firm, “yes.”

Brock Hoffman, the man who was beat out at starting center by the rookie Cooper Beebe in training camp, proved to be more than capable at right guard. Hoffman embodied the type of nasty attitude offensive lines strive for. He was routinely playing through the whistle, virtually living under the skin of his opponents. He doesn’t have the stratospheric ceiling of Martin, but he played like a plus-level starter in the seven starts he made.

Not to be forgotten, T.J. Bass also appears to be a solid replacement option. He was the expected heir apparent at RG when the 2024 season kicked off and he’s a player who already possesses a starting caliber skillset.

The two guard options give the Cowboys a lot to work with if Martin does indeed depart Dallas. Their presence would allow the Cowboys to survive such a monumental departure and save the team fairly significant money in the process.

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