When the Dallas Cowboys drafted Zack Martin in 2014, it was obvious they were getting a good player but nobody had any idea just how special he would be. Martin has made the Pro Bowl and been named an All-Pro in each of his first six seasons. He’s only the sixth player since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger to have four first-team All-Pro selections and six Pro Bowls in his first six seasons (Lawrence Taylor, Barry Sanders, Emmitt Smith, Patrick Willis, Aaron Donald). Also, he’s only the third offensive lineman to receive four first-team All-Pro selections in his first six seasons (Anthony Munoz, Larry Allen).
That’s an extremely impressive start to a career, however, when you dive inside the numbers, it’s even more eye-opening. According to Pro Football Focus, Martin hasn’t allowed a sack since Week 14 of the 2018 season, which is absolutely mindblowing.
If that sounds impressive than this next little nugget is out of this world. Per PFF, Martin has only allowed eight sacks during his entire career. He has started 94 of 96 games and registered 3,711 pass-blocking snaps over that span. What that means is that Martin only allows a sack about every 12 games or every 463 pass plays, that’s an insane ratio, to say the least.
Martin’s dominance at guard will be more paramount than ever after the shocking and sudden retirement of All-Pro Center Travis Frederick back in March. The two were the most dominant center-guard combination in the league since Martin was drafted. Now Joe Looney, who filled in for Frederick in 2018, is the front-runner to take over at center in 2020.
If a safe bet to pencil in Martin for another Pro Bowl/All-Pro season, I mean let’s face it, it’s a given until proven otherwise. You build a team from the inside out on both sides of the ball, meaning it starts on the line of scrimmage. It’s been pretty clear for quite some time now that the Cowboys have the most dominant force as far as offensive lineman are concerned in the NFL in Martin.
