In an all-important prove-it season, the player nicknamed the "Wolf Hunter" is attempting to establish himself as the alpha of the linebacker pack for the
Dallas Cowboys.
Leighton Vander Esch saw the organization decline to exercise his fifth-year option for 2022 immediately after drafting
Micah Parsons in the first round and
Jabril Cox in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft, each variable sending a clear-and-present message to Vander Esch and
Jaylon Smith. A former first-round pick himself, the former is already off to the races in impressing newly hired defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, and that's key to helping secure his playing time in 2021 and his future in North Texas in years to come.
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Quinn, speaking in early June about players who jumped out at him in his first round of Cowboys offseason works, raved about what he's seeing thus far from a determined Vander Esch -- a player the team has
received trade interest for recently but ignored due to their plans for him this coming season.
"I've been really impressed, [and] not just from the OTA time," Quinn told media. "Every once and a while you can just see a person that's on a mission, and I think that's what I've seen from Leighton from the time I arrived. You could just feel the energy, the intensity that he's putting into his workouts to change his body to get as strong as he could.
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