With Tyron Smith’s departure, Zack Martin is now the elder statesman of the Cowboys roster

Now that Tyron Smith’s gone to New York, Zack Martin is the longest-tenured member of the Cowboys’ roster.

When Zack Martin joined the Cowboys in 2014, he was three years behind Tyron Smith and one behind Travis Frederick as the new nucleus of the offensive line. He’s now the last man standing of that trio in Dallas, as well as the longest-tenured player on the entire roster. Thankfully, even after 10 seasons and at 33 years old, he’s also still one of the best guards in football.

Martin isn’t the oldest guy on the roster. That goes to punter Bryan Anger, who turns 36 in October and entered the NFL in 2012. But while Anger only joined Dallas in 2021 as a veteran free agent, Martin has been a fixture since his debut and has seen a host of coaches and players come and go around him.

The longest-tenured margin is actually pretty slim between Martin and one other 2014 draftee, DeMarcus Lawrence. But not only was Martin selected 18 spots ahead of Lawrence in that draft, he also signed his rookie contract a couple of days before Lawrence did. So however you slice it, Martin has technically been with Dallas longer.

More importantly, while Lawrence needed a few years to find his way and get past some injuries, Martin was an out-of-the-box sensation. He was an All-Pro and Pro Bowler as a rookie and has enjoyed those accolades every year except for 2020 when he missed six games due to injury. Martin has arguably been the gold standard and best player on the Cowboys’ roster for most of the last decade, especially with Tyron Smith missing a lot of games since 2016.

Martin commands heavy respect from his peers throughout the league. He was the highest-ranked guard in the league and 68th overall on the NFL Top 100 list last year. Even the Falcons’ Chris Lindstrom, also considered one of the league’s elite guards, called Martin “the best” when the list was released.

While landing a franchise fixture like Martin has already paid more than enough dividends for the Cowboys over the last 10 years, he’s hardly a luxury item for them in 2024. With not only Tyron Smith, but also center Tyler Biadasz departed as free agents, Martin will be leaned on heavily to stabilize the offensive line. He’ll have help from emerging star Tyler Smith, plus hoped-for improvement from Terence Steele now further removed from injury. But with two new starters in 2024, and the prospect of Smith sliding back to left tackle, Martin will need to keep being great for the Cowboys to stay solvent.

Thankfully, no matter what’s come over the last decade, greatness hasn’t been hard for Martin. We’re shocked when he’s on the wrong side of any play because it happens so infrequently, which is about the highest compliment an offensive lineman can get. If John Madden was alive today, you can only imagine how many “booms” and replays would center on Martin’s work. Indeed, for as legendary as Larry Allen was, Martin has come awfully close to matching that standard in Dallas.

Hopefully, unlike Tyron Smith, we’ll never have to see Zack Martin in another team’s uniform. He has a huge reliability advantage over his former teammate, which definitely helps his job security. Even if he slips from elite status, Martin could likely remain in Dallas for some time as a capable starter. But whenever that decline starts, hopefully, it’s at least not in 2024. If the Cowboys are going to compete this season, they’ll need Martin to continue to be one of the best in the business.