Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeVonte Holloman, a late-round pick out of Clemson back in 2013, will likley have to retire from the NFL due to a neck injury he suffered as a rookie last year and may have reinjured in a preseason game this past weekend.
Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett all but confirmed the news Thursday afternoon (via DallasCowboys.com).
DeVonte got information back from the doctors back he visited with regarding his neck and it doesn’t look like he’s going to be able to play football anymore,” Garrett said. “It’s in relation to the injury he had last year and he had a similar injury this year. I’ll let him speak more to that. But the information we have doesn’t look he’s going to be able to play football anymore.
Not only is this a tremendous blow to the Cowboys defense, it’s the ending of what would have likely been an extensive NFL career for the linebacker. Despite lasting until the sixth round of the 2013 draft, Holloman drew rave reviews from scouts as the best cover linebacker in the class. He proceeded to make play after play during the preseason and even started the Cowboys regular season finale against the Philadelphia Eagles.
He was expected to compete with Kyle Wilber for the starting strong-side linebacker job.
Our thoughts go out to Holloman during this difficult time for the young man. You never want to see a career ended prematurely due to injury. But it’s rather obvious that retiring from the league at this point will only help Holloman live a healthy and successful life moving forward.
Photo: ESPN.com