With the selection of Leighton Vander Esch in the first round (19th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys added a rangy, athletic linebacker with a nose for the ball. Vander Esch was an impact player for Dallas as a rookie, stepping in for Sean Lee (hamstring) and started 11 of the 16 games he played. By season's end, Vander Esch led the team with a club rookie record 176 tackles (fourth in team history) and earned a Pro Bowl spot (replacement for Luke Kuechly) to become the third Cowboys rookie defender, first linebacker, to play in the game. Along the way, he took home NFC Defensive Rookie of the Month honors (November) to become the third Cowboys rookie to win the award. After a stout rookie season, Vander Esch looked to improve his dominance, but his second season was shortened to just nine games and 87 tackles - third on defense - after suffering a neck injury that put him on Reserve/Injured for the finale and led to surgery. He spent the offseason rehabbing and regaining his form and returned in 2020 to start 10 games, missing six games with a broken clavicle (four games) and an ankle injury (two). Despite the injuries, Vander Esch finished third on the defense with 73 tackles and was named the team's Ed Block Courage Award winner. In 2021 Vander Esch placed second on the defense  with 86 tackles to go along with one sack, three tackles for loss, five pressures, two breakups and an interception. He signed a one-year contract with Dallas for 2022 and had a resurgent season, reaching the 100-tackle mark for the second time in his career, registering 100 takedowns (second on the defense), three tackles for loss, a sack, one breakup and one forced fumble in 14 starts. He signed a two-year deal in the 2023 offseason to keep him entrenched in the middle of the Cowboys defense for the foreseeable future.
