When Zack Martin's season ended due to injury, the Dallas Cowboys coaching staff had to figure out who could fill in for the future Hall of Famer.
The player they settled on was Brock Hoffman, as he started seven games and performed reasonably well.
But now, as we look ahead to the 2025 version of the Cowboys under Brian Schottenheimer, Hoffman, along with T.J. Bass, who also played well in short stints last season, are the two choices to fill the Martin void.
However, could Schottenheimer see Hoffman as the starting right guard come Week 1?
“I would never bet against Brock Hoffman,” Schottenheimer said. “If I was in a back room of a bar and had to get out, the way he's wired, he would be one of the first guys I want with me. So absolutely, he's just wired the right way. The flexibility, being able to play center and guard, of course, is the puzzle we have to fit together. But Brock Hoffman, the intensity and the way he plays the game is hard to find.”
Let's not forget that the 6-4, 300-pound Hoffman was up to his eyeballs last training camp for the starting center role, and had Dak Prescott's vote to be the starter before Cooper Beebe won the role. So he has the talent to play at both positions.
And that "bar fight'' mentality? That comes with the territory if you go unselected in the 2022 NFL Draft and then battle your way through practice squad work, first with the Browns and then here.
The Cowboys coaching staff has stated they will play "the best five" and will figure out the positions later, but for Hoffman, training camp looms as the time when he can take the right guard position and make it his own.
Schottenheimer isn't betting against Hoffman, who likes to get physical (sometimes a little too much), but the team relishes it, and come Week 1, him being the starting right guard might be a good bet.
