Leighton Vander Esch diagnosed with collarbone fracture
By John Buhler
Leighton Vander Esch injured his collarbone and has been ruled out.
The Dallas Cowboys have to be concerned about Leighton Vander Esch‘s health.
The former first-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft out of Boise State University is an excellent player when he’s healthy, but he rarely is. Vander Esch suffered a collarbone injury on Sunday Night Football vs. the Los Angeles Rams. He is coming off a season where he dealt with a neck injury. With it all happening in the same area, this doesn’t sound good for Vander Esch.
Cowboys LB Leighton Vander Esch went to the locker room to have his collarbone evaluated
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) September 14, 2020
Leighton Vander Esch (collarbone) has been ruled out for the rest of the game
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) September 14, 2020
UPDATE — 8:30 p.m PT
It appears as though Vander Esch has a fractured collarbone.
#Cowboys star LB Leighton Vander Esch suffered a fractured collarbone early in the game tonight, source said. He’ll land on Injured Reserve, a brutal blow. The nerve center of the defense and one of its top playmakers, Vander Esch’s loss stings. He’ll be back this season.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 14, 2020
What if Leighton Vander Esch misses major time with a collarbone injury?
From a competitive standpoint, the Cowboys should be able to hold their own in what won’t be a very strong NFC East division. The Philadelphia Eagles lost to the Washington Football Team early on Sunday, and the New York Giants are not expected to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers on the first Monday Night Football game of Week 1. However, the Cowboys may not get to being NFC elite.
Teams like the Green Bay Packers, the New Orleans Saints and the Seattle Seahawks looked very strong in earlier windows on Sunday. Though we still have 15 games left for the NFC playoff picture to be decided, not having Vander Esch for a good while may contribute to the Cowboys not being able to reach the NFC Championship game for the first time since 1995.
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As for Vander Esch, this is devastating. He was a Pro Bowler as a rookie out of Boise State in 2018. Tabbed as the successor for Sean Lee in the middle of their defense, it seems he struggles with the injury bug about as often as his linebacking brother. If it is a broken collarbone, this is a huge blow to the middle of the Cowboys defense. They can’t be happy about this at all.
If Vander Esch is out for a while, Dallas is now vulnerable in the middle of its defense.