Longtime Dallas Cowboys guard Zack Martin originally announced his retirement in late February after telling the organization he was planning on calling it a career. On Wednesday, the 11-year pro made his retirement official after penning a lengthy letter on The Players’ Tribune.
The 34-year-old former guard credited his oldest son, Charlie, who is six years old, for keeping him going in the 2024 season. Martin explains that his son loved visiting the facilities and looked up to teammate CeeDee Lamb the most.
“But every time I bring him to the facility and he’s playing with a muddy knee brace or whatever, I can see his head whipping around looking for CeeDee to walk in. One of the highlights of my life just as a dad was being able to bring Charlie onto the field at AT&T to give CeeDee and Dak a pound before the game. One of the big reasons I kept pushing through all the injuries the last few years was to give him those little moments when he can remember it.”
Martin also mentioned his family for helping him navigate his NFL career and how much they helped with football in general. His family was a clear motivator throughout his entire career, even to the very end.
“It’s funny that I’m the one writing a letter here. From the time I was a freshman in high school all the way up until my final NFL game, my father was the one writing me a letter. I don’t know how the tradition started, but one day, he wrote me a note on a piece of looseleaf paper, folded it up, and handed it to me at the breakfast table before school.
“I read the letter at my locker before the game, and I went out and played like I had my whole family pushing behind me for the hard yards. I must have played more than 200 football games since then. My dad has never missed a letter. And my parents have barely missed a game. The entire way, it was an us thing.”
Dallas finished the 2024 campaign with a 7-10 record and missed out on the playoffs. After having a roller coaster of a season, the franchise hopes to right the ship after letting Mike McCarthy go and replacing him with Brian Schottenheimer as head coach. The Cowboys also restructured Lamb and Dak Prescott’s contracts this offseason to create more cap space.
Martin ended his career playing for the Cowboys for 11 seasons. During his career, Martin was a seven-time All-Pro, nine-time Pro Bowler, and member of the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team. He will also be named into the Cowboys’ Ring of Honor upon retiring from the organization.