Leighton Vander Esch had as good of a rookie season as he could've imagined. After being taken 19th overall in the 2018 draft, the Boise State product became a star in his first year with the Cowboys. He racked up 140 tackles, made the Pro Bowl, and was named a second-team All-Pro.

Now, LVE is giving back to his community. The inside linebacker is capitalizing on his success and paying for his old high school to get a new weight room, according to Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com.

Vander Esch donated $45,000 of his own money to make it happen, and the other $25,000 was financed by a local fitness equipment company.

“It was the first thing that popped into my mind because it was a big need”, Vander Esch said. “It just made the most sense. A lot of the racks and stuff were all made in shop class and everybody has been saying we need a new weight room. It was barely even a weight room before, and now to see the excitement level of the guys using the new room has just been awesome”, he continued.

RECOMMENDED (Article Continues Below)
Patriots' Ezekiel Elliott stands next to Cowboys logo, Dak Prescott in background

Christopher Smith ·

Micah Parsons (Cowboys) action shot with deal with it shades

Rexwell Villas ·

Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy next to Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. There are question marks surrounding Mike McCarthy.

Ben Strauss ·

Vander Esch is home in Idaho for the offseason, and has been working out every morning in the new weight room. Next season, he'll be the leader of a defense that became one of the best in the league in 2018.

Vander Esch exceeded all expectations last year, but will now be tasked with helping the Cowboys get back to the playoffs. Whatever happens on the field, it's great to see Vander Esch making such a positive impact off of it.