The next Zack Martin ? That's unfair to Tyler Booker .
The next leader and anchor on the Dallas Cowboys offensive line? That's not only fair, but entirely foreseeable.
The former Alabama football offensive guard was selected No. 12 overall by the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL draft on Thursday night, extending the Crimson Tide's streak of producing at least one first-rounder to 17 years. It's a clean fit in just about every possible way; a bigger-than-life player with an outsized personality to match, bound for a big spotlight on America's team.
No, there's no hiding from the expectations in Big D, not even for an offensive guard. Especially when you've been tapped to step in for a future Pro Football Hall of Famer. Eleven years ago, the Cowboys spent their first-round draft pick on offensive lineman Martin, and the former Notre Dame great flourished to become the best guard in the NFL. In 11 seasons, he was selected to nine Pro Bowls and, even more impressively, was a seven-time All-Pro.
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Martin announced his retirement two months ago, setting the table for Dallas' selection. Make no mistake, the Cowboys are looking to Booker to step into that void. And while it's unreasonable to expect anyone to duplicate a pro career like Martin had, Booker at least has the physical and mental makeup to meet the moment.
He is a road-grader of a run blocker, capable of driving defensive linemen off the line of scrimmage to create big creases for running backs. In pass protection, he can stonewall defensive tackles or, despite his massive size, handle blitzing linebackers or twists that bring quicker pass-rushers into his lane. The skill is elite, the effort relentless.
But what will serve Booker just as much as he steps into Martin's cleats is the attitude that compelled the Cowboys to make him the first interior offensive lineman selected in the 2025 draft. Former UA coach Nick Saban was never fond of rotating offensive linemen; typically, UA's second-team line would sub in as a group only after a game's outcome was in hand. That changed in 2022, when Booker, as a true freshman, forced his way into a rotation with guards Javion Cohen and Emil Ekiyor. That didn't happen because Cohen and Ekiyor were struggling, either − Booker was just too good to keep off the field.
Two years later, he was the first Alabama veteran to make a commitment to staying at UA when Saban retired, and largely led the effort to hold the roster together during a 30-day window in which players were permitted to transfer under NCAA rules.
Soon after, he began building a strong relationship with Parker Brailsford , who transferred from Washington to play center, and thus grasped an understanding of new coach Kalen DeBoer's offense more quickly than most, if not all, of his fellow linemen. It was a very different scheme than what he was used to under previous UA offensive coordinators Bill O'Brien and Tommy Rees, one that would demand more quickness and mobility from the Crimson Tide 's offensive line. Booker responded by trimming down in the offseason, cutting his weight from 352 pounds to 330 to make a seamless transition to an offensive system that asked a lot more of him.
It's intangibles like that − factors that go beyond film-watching − that made made Booker fans of scouting departments across the NFL. It's what separates good players from great pros.
The next Zack Martin? Nobody, not even the Cowboys, should ask that of him.
Booker will demand plenty of himself, however. And that will give Dallas everything it's looking for in a first-round pick.
Tuscaloosa News columnist Chase Goodbread is also the weekly co-host of Crimson Cover TV on WVUA-23. Reach him at cgoodbread@gannett.com. Follow on X.com @chasegoodbread.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: How Cowboys' Tyler Booker will fit into Zack Martin's big shoes
