DeVonte Holloman Neck Injury Likely Ends His Football Career

While the Dallas Cowboys will dearly miss players like Sean Lee and DeMarcus Lawrence due to their serious injuries this offseason, the saddest of injury news has now become official. Many were speculating that the neck injury DeVonte Holloman suffered in the second preseason game versus the Baltimore Ravens was disconcerting due to the spinal contusion he suffered in 2013 that forced him to miss six games. Holloman got second and third opinions on his injury as the media and fans were left wondering if this would be a career-ending injury, and reports are coming in that it is indeed the case.

According to Brandon George of SportsDayDFW:

Jason Garrett revealed Thursday that Cowboys LB DeVonte Holloman's football career is over due to a sever neck injury.

DeVonte Holloman suffered the injury Saturday in the club's second preseason game against the Baltimore Ravens.

The news was also confirmed by Nick Eatman at the mothership.

Head coach Jason Garrett delivered the sad news during Thursday's press conference, stating the second-year linebacker has a neck injury that will likely prevent him from playing another down of football.

Holloman, 23, missed six games last year with a neck injury and has battled through some neck-issues the last few weeks, including a setback in Saturday's preseason game. After getting three different medical opinions, including one in San Antonio this week, it appears continuing his playing career won't be in Holloman's best interest.

This is awful news for a young player that showed some promising flashes early in his NFL career. While the media speculation has been about Tony Romo being one hit away from his back surgery being detrimental to his career, it is often ignored that in the NFL every player is one serious injury away from an early ending to their football career. Fans of the sport were reminded this when NYG David Wilson was forced into early retirement due to his own severe neck injuries, and now the Cowboys Nation has suffered a similar loss.

Count me among the many fans that had high hopes for the athletically talented second-year player. DeVonte Holloman showed a lot of promise in his rookie year in 2013 after returning from his first neck injury and filling in admirably as the starting middle linebacker in the final two games of the season. While this is a serious blow the the Cowboys depth chart at linebacker, which is already hurting from the loss of a team captain in Sean Lee, this is clearly a much more severe blow to Holloman himself. We can only wish the young man the best after his dream of an NFL career was cut short. The bright side is that Holloman does not appear to have any long-term damage that will affect his daily life as he managed to walk off the field after the injury. But now the Cowboys must find new answers to their linebacker depth chart, and DeVonte Holloman must begin his journey on a new path in life that does not include playing football in the NFL.

It is a sad day indeed.