OXNARD, Calif. – Over the offseason, the Cowboys held two retirement ceremonies for two of the best offensive linemen to ever wear a star on their helmet: Zack Martin and Tyron Smith.

At those ceremonies, their former teammate La’el Collins was present both times. Even though he hadn’t played since 2022, he wanted no part of hanging up his cleats.

“I told them coming into it, ‘Hey, I’m coming to your guys’ retirement, but don’t let none of that stuff roll off on me, because I ain’t done yet.'” Collins said.

Sure enough, Collins isn’t done. After a successful workout on Friday morning, the Cowboys welcomed back Collins, who has played six of his seven NFL seasons with the team, and it’s somewhat just like old times.

“It feels like a new beginning at home” Collins said. “Just happy to be back, super excited to show what I’ve got left in the tank.”

What does he have in the tank?

“A whole lot. My body is fresh, a whole lot,” Collins said. “Just all about being consistent with my prep and my post, just being ready to stay on top of things, be proactive.”

It’s evident that Collins has put in the work physically to be able to return to the playing field after suffering an ACL and MCL injury in 2022. He’s weighing in at 300 pounds, the lightest he’s been since high school and five pounds less than he played at LSU from 2011-2014. It’s paying off, and he doesn’t feel as much stress on his joints early on in his return to play.

“This is probably the best I’ve felt in a long time,” Collins said. “When I left, I was okay going into that first year in Cincinnati. I had a lot of adversity, just with my body and stuff, so now, my body is fresh. I haven’t played ball in terms of a lot in a while, so feel good and just going to continue to be proactive and continue to trust the process.”

After the injury in 2022, Collins felt at times like the NFL had given up on him. Instead of caving to the daunting task in front of him, he believed in himself and had made the climb all the way back to the league.

“Anytime you’re fighting to get healthy, especially with the injury I had late in 2022, a lot of people don’t even get a chance to even think about coming back,” Collins said. “I just had faith, I had faith and I trusted the process. I knew if I did my part and stayed prepared that an opportunity would come along.”

With Collins looking for a landing spot after a few years away and the Cowboys in need of help on the offensive line after sustaining some training camp injuries, it was an easy decision for both sides.

“The best-case scenario was to go back where it all started, and that’s to be here,” Collins said. “There’s nowhere I’d rather be. That’s 100% a fact. Even when I left, there was nothing like home. This is what I know, this is where my heart is, so I want to continue to finish off strong here.”

Quarterback Dak Prescott was also a big part of Collins’ decision. The two share a close bond on and off the field, and Collins calls himself an uncle to Prescott’s two daughters, MJ and Aurora Rayne, and has one goal in mind for their father.

“Dak is a brother of mine,” Collins said. “Just to the end, on the field, off the field, MJ doesn’t have to worry, her dad will be protected.”