The Dallas Cowboys are surprisingly well-represented in the All-Pro team for the 2023 NFL season, which was revealed by the Associated Press on Friday. There were nine Cowboys selected in total; four were First Team players and five were Second Team players.
The four members of the First Team were CeeDee Lamb, Zack Martin, DaRon Bland, and Brandon Aubrey; the members of the Second Team were Dak Prescott, Tyron Smith, Tyler Smith, Micah Parsons, and Bryan Anger.
Lamb has a stellar season in which he hauled in a league-high 135 receptions for 1,749 yards and 12 touchdowns, earning him his first AP All-Pro first-team selection. In 2022, Lamb was an All-Pro on the second team; however, in 2023, he made the first team.
After leading the NFL in interceptions with nine, including an NFL record-tying five interception returns for touchdowns, Bland is named to the first team of the AP All-Pro team. In addition to receiving a Pro Bowl nomination and his first career All-Pro selection, Bland stepped in and offered excellent coverage as a boundary corner.
Martin, who started the season at right guard, had another fantastic campaign. After allowing just four sacks and 22 pressures on 908 snaps, he earned his eighth spot on the AP All-Pro first team. Martin now ties Bob Lilly and Randy White for the most AP All-Pro first-team nods in franchise history.
Nine Dallas Cowboys have been named to the AP All-Pro list this morning.
First Team: Zack Martin (7th), CeeDee Lamb (1st), DaRon Bland (1st), & Brandon Aubrey (1st)
Second Team: Tyron Smith (5th), Micah Parsons (3rd), Bryan Anger (2nd), Dak Prescott (1st), & Tyler Smith (1st)
— Kyle Youmans (@Kyle_Youmans) January 12, 2024
Aubrey set an NFL record with 35 straight field goals kicked to begin a career, putting together the finest kicker debut season in league history. His 99 kickoff touchbacks set a single-season NFL record, and his 36 makes for the season topped the NFL. Since Richie Cunningham in 1997, this is the first time a Cowboys kicker has been named to the first team.
Tyron Smith is back on an All-Pro squad for the first time since 2016 after appearing in 13 games with just one sack and 18 pressures on 847 snaps.
According to Pro Football Focus, Tyler Smith made an All-Pro team for the first time in his career despite only giving up one sack and 17 pressures in 942 snaps. His performance in his second season at left guard has cemented his place among the NFL’s best interior linemen.
For the first time in his three-year career, Parsons did not make the first team, but his selection to the second team ensures that he remains an AP All-Pro.
Without any fault of his own, Anger recorded a career-low 44 punts, but he did establish a career-high with a 51.4-yard punting average. In his 12-year career, this is his second time being selected to the AP All-Pro second team.