Cowboys guard Zack Martin reveals first impressions of new offensive line coach Mike Solari

Dallas Cowboys eight-time all-pro offensive lineman Zack Martin and his unit have a new coach for the 2023 season, former Seahawks OL coach Mike Solari. After getting to know Solari better, Martin is excited to work with him and take advantage of his extensive resume.

“He’s been great,” Martin said this week. “A lot of energy. His resume speaks for itself, he’s coached a lot of good lines. I think the biggest thing is bringing that edge back to our offensive line and I think he’s gonna be a big part of that.

“It’s been a great first month or so with him and I can’t wait to get to practice with him.”

Solari, who has been coaching at various levels since the late 70s, was most recently in Seattle. The Seahawks gave him the axe in February of 2022 after four seasons. He joined Dallas in February after the slew of coaching staff changes.

The 68-year-old coached for the Cowboys under Tom Landry from 1987-1988 as assistant offensive line coach and special teams coach. According to ESPN reporter Todd Archer, Solari also nearly joined the Cowboys staff in 2018 but Jason Garrett hired Paul Alexander instead.

Solari to ‘bring edge back’ to Cowboys OL

On top of his familiarity with the Cowboys, Solari also has a history with head coach Mike McCarthy. He was McCarthy’s assistant offensive line coach in Green Bay in 2015. Following his stint with the Packers, Solari coached for the New York Giants in 2016-2017.

He has one Super Bowl under his belt. He was with the San Francisco 49ers in 1995 as tight ends coach and assistant offensive line coach when they won Super Bowl XXIX.

Former OL coach Joe Philbin was one of eight coaches that parted ways with the team after the playoff loss to the 49ers. His contract was up and the Cowboys opted not to renew for another season.

Solari takes over the Cowboys unit after some personnel changes this offseason. Backup guard Connor McGovern departed in free agency, joining the Bills on a three-year deal. Meanwhile, Dallas picked up a new lineman in the draft – UNC’s Asim Richards.

Richards is a 6-foot-4, 309-pound tackle that started three seasons for the Tar Heels. Though he played tackle at UNC, he could also move inside for Dallas.

Richards earned third-team All-ACC honors last season for his play on the field, allowing only three sacks in 1,049 snaps played at left tackle on the year. He also allowed two quarterback hits and 16 hurries in 666 pass protection snaps.