FRISCO, Texas – The Cowboys chose not to exercise the fifth-year option on linebacker Leighton Vander Esch’s contract before Monday’s deadline, as expected.
That means Vander Esch, the club’s first-round pick in 2018, is set to enter the final year of his rookie deal unless both sides agree to an extension at some point.
Vander Esch finished third on the team in tackles (73) last season despite missing six games with injuries: a fractured collarbone in Week 1 that required surgery and a temporary stay on injured reserve, then a sprained ankle in Week 15 that sidelined him the final two games of the season.
Vander Esch has missed 13 games the past two years since his dominant 2018 rookie season, when he became the Cowboys’ third rookie defender and first rookie linebacker to make the Pro Bowl. In 2019, a neck injury kept him out seven games and required surgery after the season.
Vander Esch is scheduled to make $2.1 million this year. A fifth-year option would have paid him a little more than $9 million in 2022.
Last week before the 2021 NFL Draft, Cowboys chief operating officer Stephen Jones said the club was still deciding whether to pick up the option.
