Getty Image / Robin Alam
Dallas Cowboys guard Zack Martin has been held out for the entirety of the team’s training camp.
Martin is looking for a new contract as he is widely regarded as the league’s best guard, but only makes the 8th-highest salary at the position.
This offseason, there have been a few notable holdouts across the NFL.
The most important one of those holdouts might be the one happening in Dallas.
Cowboys guard Zach Martin has been holding out in an effort to get himself a new contract.
Martin has 2 years left on a deal that he signed back in 2018 that currently makes him the 8th-highest paid guard in the NFL.
With the regular season less than a month away, Cowboys fans likely find themselves hoping that this will end soon.
Unfortunately, that may not be the case.
According to NFL insider Ian Rapoport, Martin and the Cowboys aren’t close on a deal.
"I don't get the sense that we're close to a resolution with any of the players that are holding out" ~ @RapSheet #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/ojndD6jdTz
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) August 11, 2023
“The holdouts are Zack Martin with the Dallas Cowboys, who is standing on principle,” Rapoport said. “It’s interesting because you talk to the Cowboys people and he’s one of their favorite players. Cowboys coaches and executives, they love Zack Martin. He’s been the highest-paid guard for several years but he looks at the market and feels he’s under-compensated and is taking a really strong stance. I don’t sense any traction there.”
Martin is one of the most important players on the Cowboys’ roster. He is the backbone of an offensive line that was once the best in the NFL.
He has been named and All-Pro in 7 of his 8 years in the NFL, including making the first team each of the past two seasons.
With the Cowboys now seemingly headed for a more run-heavy approach now that Kellen Moore is gone, Martin will be more important than ever for the success of the Cowboys’ offense.
Dallas Cowboys fans will have to hope that added importance will get the team to speed these negotiations along and get Martin back in the building as quickly as possible.