5 Dallas Cowboys who won’t return in 2023

2. Donovan Wilson, S

Another sixth-round pick who ended up becoming a contributor in Big D is safety Donovan Wilson. A product of Texas A&M, he entered the league with a reputation as a hard-hitter but needed to refine his coverage skills.

As a rookie in 2019, he hardly saw the field and registered just two tackles. In 2020 as a sophomore, Wilson had a solid campaign with 71 tackles, 3.5 sacks, and two interceptions.

However, in 2021, he struggled with some injuries and missed eight games of the season. He played well when he was out there but was completely outperformed by Jayron Kearse — and both players are much better when used near the line of scrimmage.

This coming season, he will be the third safety with Hooker and Kearse already on the roster, and as long as he stays healthy, he’s going to play well. The only problem there for Dallas is that they won’t be able to keep him as the No. 3, even though that role does get a lot of playing time.

Instead, some team in need of an enforcer at the position is going to pay him to be a starter while also offering a much bigger role. Sometimes the only downfall to finding diamonds in the rough is that by the time they truly develop, it’s time for them to get paid and Dallas has to be careful about who they dish their money out to.