No pun intended the Dallas Cowboys linebacker is going to be out for about two months due to a broken collarbone. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport confirmed the news on Monday.
“#Cowboys LB Leighton Vander Esch cleanly broke his collarbone, source said after his CT scan. He’ll have surgery and return to action in 6-8 weeks.”
The Cowboys were already limited at linebacker with Sean Lee out until Week 4. Vander Esch was hopeful to return to his 2018 Pro Bowl form after a nagging neck injury kept him out of seven games in 2019.
Vander Esch underwent surgery on his neck in the middle of January according to ESPN’s Todd Archer. It’s expected that Vander Esch will be ready for the off-season program.
At the time, according to the Dallas Morning News’ Michael Gehlken, the surgery was a “success.”
“Cowboys VP Stephen Jones said LB Leighton Vander Esch’s neck surgery “went well. I feel really good about it. I feel really good about him making a full recovery and being ready to participate in everything.”
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones confirmed that Vander Esch is ready to go.
According to Gehlken, Jones said that Vander Esch is “100% in my eyes-100%.” Jones also said he is expecting Vander Esch to be a “full participant by the start of training camp.”
Now, Vander Esch will have to rehab another area. It’s an unfortunate blow to a defense that was hoping to make it back to the top-10 in rankings.