FRISCO — The play made by Leighton Vander Esch in Thursday’s practice was notable on two fronts.
The first was the play itself. As Dak Prescott scrambled to his right and threw on the run, Vander Esch launched himself toward the receiver, his outstretched body parallel to the ground, and made a spectacular interception.
The second? The linebacker then laid motionless on the turf. He wasn’t there for an eternity, but it seemed like it when you thought back to the 13 games he’s missed over the last two seasons.
He then got up, walked around and was clearly fine.
“I dove for it and I think I hit the ground harder than I ever have,” Vander Esch said. “It knocked the wind out of me pretty good. But it was fun.
“I mean, I haven’t had an interception in a little while in practice, so it felt good.”
Vander Esch feels better about his health and the defensive scheme than he has in a while. Motivation? It’s strong, but has nothing to do with the Cowboys’ refusal to pick up the fifth-year option or the addition of first-round pick Micah Parsons.
“I’ve always been motivated,” Vander Esch said. “I don’t have to use that to be motivated to play better or work harder. I’ve been on a mission since the season was over because we just can’t have a season like we did.
“I’m just controlling what I can control, and the rest will take care of itself.”
This is a pivotal season when it comes to the linebacker’s future with the Cowboys. The club declined to exercise the fifth year of his contract, meaning the first-round pick from the 2018 draft is entering the final year of his contract.
Vander Esch understands the decision. He missed the final six games of the ’19 season when it was discovered he suffered from cervical spinal stenosis, a narrowing of the spinal canal. He came back and fractured his collarbone in last year’s opener.
All told, he missed 11 of 14 games in one frustrating stretch over the two seasons. Committing $9.145 million for an extra season is a risky investment given that history. Executive vice president Stephen Jones called and explained the rationale.
“We had a great conversation,” Vander Esch said. “I have nothing but respect for the Jones [family]. I mean, they’re the ones that took a chance on me to begin with, so I mean, I trust in their plan and I think we have a great thing going. Our relationship is amazing.
“I’m just controlling what I can control. I’ve got no control over the logistics of who pays who what.”
Or who drafts whom. What went through his mind when the Cowboys used the No. 12 pick on Parsons?
He competes with his teammates, not against them.
“I think it’s better for our team,” Vander Esch said of the acquisition of Parsons. “At that point it was just, it was seeing how we can make our team better.
“I don’t control who they pick. I can control my job and how I play and how I prepare and being a leader, being an example for a guy like that. But I mean, you saw him out there [Thursday], he’s making plays. He’s having fun.
“I’m just pumped to be a part of a group that has the athleticism and potential that we have going into this year.’'
Vander Esch considers the injuries he’s suffered the last two seasons “a bad chain of luck’' and unconnected. He spent the entire offseason at The Star, training, lifting and running to increase what he calls his body armor.
“He’s in great shape,” head coach Mike McCarthy said. “I know from my time working with him, this is the best shape overall because he was coming off an injury this time last year.
“He’s been there every day. I love his work ethic. I love his approach. He’s top notch at every category when you’re talking about preparing for an upcoming football season.
“I think everything that is in front of him will be attainable.”
It’s attainable, in Vander Esch’s mind, because he’ll return to the position at which he’s most comfortable.
After Vander Esch spent his first two seasons at weakside linebacker, defensive coordinator Mike Nolan moved him to the middle last season. New coordinator Dan Quinn has put him back on the weakside.
“I’m going back to pretty much to my old role from the first two years, which I think is what it should have been last year,” Vander Esch said. “I think it’s going to be a lot more familiar to what we were used to doing, which is running and hitting and making plays and having fun.”
Learning Nolan’s scheme wasn’t hard, Vander Esch will tell you. The difficulty came in that it was so different from what the team ran under Rod Marinelli and the pandemic eliminated the offseason to get up to speed.
Vander Esch takes a long pause before going further.
“I mean, I think there are a lot of other things I could say about it,” Vander Esch said. “But it’s in the past.”
He’s excited about the future with Quinn.
“Things are cut and dry,” the linebacker said. “I mean, his intensity and his involvement, I think, is a total game-changer.
“He’s right in there with us, running plays and walkthroughs, and if it ain’t right, he’ll tell us. And it’s like, ‘I didn’t like this today or I did like this today.’ He gives credit where credit is due, but he’s also there to tell you when things ain’t right.
“I have so much respect for him already. I love a coach like that.”
Now, back to practice. After getting the breath knocked out of him on that interception, it would have been easy to let Vander Esch sit out the remainder of this voluntary session. But he came back on the field a few minutes later and would have dropped running back Tony Pollard in the backfield for a loss if tackling were allowed at this stage of the offseason.
“I mean, I think I’m probably going to get hurt more if I’m not playing hard,” Vander Esch said. “If the ball is in the air, I’m going to go get it. If the ball is on the ground, I’m going to go get it.
“You’re going to get the most out of me every snap, so I’m not here to use injuries as an excuse to play half-ass.”
Catch David Moore on The Ticket (KTCK-AM 1310 and 96.7 FM) periodically throughout the offseason.
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