'My Body Won't Cooperate': Cowboys' Vander Esch On Retiring at Age 28

'My Body Won't Cooperate': Dallas Cowboys' Leighton Vander Esch On Retiring at Age 28

FRISCO - Age 28 is often about the time when a young man starts to hit his stride in his profession and starts to rise in his career. And indeed, whatever it is that Dallas Cowboys linebacker Leighton Vander Esch does next will likely follow that trajectory in the finest of ways.

But as he announced his retirement from the NFL on Monday, is was very much about the end - and about a rather sad one.

"I love the game of football so much, and my body won't cooperate any longer," Vander Esch said. 

A first-round pick out in 2018 - taken by the Cowboys despite stories of potential neck issues - Vander Esch made the Pro Bowl as a rookie. Unfortunately, the injury issues did plague him, and ultimately led to his early departure from the league as he was cut by Dallas on Friday.

"The Wolf Hunter,'' the outdoorsman who played eight-man football in Idaho before starring at Boise State, is choosing to make this day about positivity. His lengthy statement and video singled out numerous positive influences, including the Jones family, his coaches and teammates.

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"I cherished every moment of my NFL career, and it has been such a blessing to play the game for as long as I have played,'' he said, adding that support from his wife Madalynn has been central to his success.

Said coach Mike McCarthy: "Having a teammate like Leighton is something everyone on our staff and in our locker room valued greatly, and we're going to miss him. I wish Leighton, his wife Madalynn and their daughter the best and know that he's going to continue living life to the fullest."

You are elite, Wolf Hunter 🐺 pic.twitter.com/Q9LdIHe2HH

— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) March 18, 2024

Vander Esch, of whom owner Jerry Jones said he was "proud'' to have worn the star, also touched on his life path, saying, "God ... I strive to let you work through me in this next chapter to continue to impact people’s lives and to be a light in this world.”