The Dallas Cowboys were embarrassed by the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, but the news did not get any better for the team a day later.
Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy confirmed that linebacker Leighton Vander Esch will likely be placed on injured reserve after injuring his neck during Sunday’s loss. That would rule him out for at least four weeks.
Vander Esch suffered the injury when he was blocked into teammate Micah Parsons by San Francisco’s Trent Williams.
#LeightonVanderEsch
Neck injury may be worse news for @dallascowboys than the blowout loss.https://t.co/pOhPPmFctF pic.twitter.com/EwyRH52D1U— David J. Chao – ProFootballDoc (@ProFootballDoc) October 9, 2023
Injuries have been a common theme for Vander Esch throughout his career. After a dominant rookie season in 2018, he struggled to stay healthy in 2019 and 2020, with neck injuries a major factor at that point as well. He was able to stay on the field more for the next two seasons, but his production was not quite as elite as it had been.
Vander Esch had 30 total tackles and a fumble returned for the touchdown in the first five games of the season before suffering the injury. The Cowboys will miss him, especially since they have already lost another key defensive starter for the season.
