Bleacher Report questions if Cowboys were best team for Leighton Vander Esch

If you have been paying attention to the Dallas Cowboys free agency period, you probably noticed that the team has decided to stay almost entirely in-house with their free-agent signings. Some of those brought back, such as Dalton Schultz and Jayron Kearse, will be starters who will make a big impact. Most of the other players fill more No. 2 or depth roles that caused little excitement.

Were these players worth signing, even if just for cheap, one-year deals? Some would say no. In fact, according to a recent article from Bleacher Report that lists seven NFL free agents who ended up on the wrong team, there’s a returning player that caused the publication to scratch their heads. That weird decision was the choice to bring back linebacker Leighton Vander Esch.

While Vander Esch did start in 16 games last year, he was largely overshadowed by Micah Parsons and his career, in general, has been plagued by injury issues. To jog your memory, Vander Esch was the 19th overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. He had an impressive rookie campaign with 140 tackles, two tackles for loss, two interceptions, and a Pro Bowl nomination. From there, it all went downhill. In 2019 and 2020, neck and collarbone injuries kept him sidelined for many games. After getting a PFF grade of 84.4 as a rookie, his grades were 58.4, 50.6, and 63.5 for the next three years.

Many expected Vander Esch to don a different uniform next season in large part because the Cowboys declined to exercise his fifth-year option ahead of 2021. The front office gave themselves an out to let go of the linebacker but oddlly kept him anyway. However, it’s also important to note that this decision is probably worse for Vander Esch than it is for Dallas.

Bleacher Report argues that Cowboys linebacker Leighton Vander Esch’s return to Dallas was not a good move

Although Vander Esch improved last year, the article points out that he took part in his smallest role on the defense since he was drafted. Even though he was considered a starter, the linebacker was only part of 58% of the defensive snaps in 2021. After reportedly garnering interest from the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers, you would think the Boise State product would want to go to a team that would use him more than Dallas did. You’d also think Dallas would want to save the money, albeit not a lot of money, on a guy they didn’t want.

To make matters worse for the 26-year-old, Stephen Jones spent much of his time talking to reporters last week saying how linebacker Jabril Cox “should be a big plus” for the team next year after recovering from an ACL tear suffered in Week 8. This likely puts yet another player ahead of Vander Esch in the rankings, leading to less playing time.

For a one-year, $3 million contract, the Cowboys are adding depth at the linebacker position with a guy they clearly don’t like all that much. While it’s nice to have continuity and stay put, Bleacher Report understandably argues that Vander Esch might’ve been happier signing a one-year, prove-it deal with a team where he’d actually have a big enough role to prove himself.