FRISCO, Texas -- Reflecting on his career, when he retired the first time after 15 years with the Dallas Cowboys in 2017, tight end Jason Witten said things "happened over a long period of time all of a sudden."
Things change quickly in the NFL.
Last week, future Hall of Fame guard Zack Martin retired after an 11-year career with the Cowboys. This week, defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence agreed to a three-year deal with the Seattle Seahawks.
Together, they were the longest-tenured Cowboys, Dallas' first- and second-round picks of the 2014 draft.
Their departures, however, were not surprising. There had been rumblings of Martin's retirement going back to 2023, and Lawrence was going to command money the Cowboys would not want to match for a 32-year-old defensive end coming off an injury.
The longest-tenured Cowboy is now quarterback Dak Prescott, a fourth-round pick in 2016. The second-longest tenured Cowboy is special teams' ace C.J. Goodwin, who came to the Cowboys as a free agent in 2018. The third-longest tenured Cowboy is safety Donovan Wilson, a sixth-round pick in 2019.
They are the last players to have played for coach Jason Garrett, whose last year in Dallas was 2019.
As the Cowboys remake the roster in Brian Schottenheimer's first year as coach, it's clear they will be younger.
Martin is 34. Lawrence turns 33 next month. Cornerback Jourdan Lewis, who signed a three-year deal, $30 million deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars, turns 30 in August. The door is not shut on potential returns of wide receiver Brandin Cooks, 31, or linebacker Eric Kendricks, 33. Cooks still has his speed, and Kendricks led the Cowboys in tackles last season, but it's possible both could be elsewhere in 2025.
So far, the Cowboys have added six players from other organizations in free agency and trades. The oldest is defensive lineman Solomon Thomas, who turns 30 in December.
Cornerback Kaiir Elam, picked up in a trade from the Buffalo Bills, turns 24 in May. Linebacker Jack Sanborn and running back Javonte Williams turn 25 before the season begins. Guard Robert Jones and defensive end Payton Turner are 26.
Overall, the Cowboys were a youthful team under coach Mike McCarthy. They will be even younger under Schottenheimer, especially factoring in the drafted and undrafted rookies who will end up on the roster.
Schottenheimer praised his coaching staff when meeting with the media at the NFL combine in Indianapolis. He liked the mix of NFL and college coaches. His staff is young, too.
Schottenheimer is 10 years younger than his predecessor, McCarthy. Offensive coordinator Klayton Adams is 42, nine years younger than Schottenheimer, who held the offensive coordinator title under McCarthy. Defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus turns 55 in May and is 13 years younger than his predecessor, Mike Zimmer. Special teams coordinator Nick Sorensen turns 47 in July and is four years younger than his predecessor, John Fassel.
Last year, owner and general manager Jerry Jones used "all-in" to describe the Cowboys' approach. Before free agency this year, executive vice president Stephen Jones said the Cowboys would be "selectively aggressive" in their approach.
So far, the Cowboys' approach has been, "youth movement."
But, hey, the Cowboys did keep Goodwin, who is 35, and punter Bryan Anger, who turns 37 in October.