Veteran linebacker Logan Wilson recently took to social media to announce his retirement from the NFL. The Dallas Cowboys waived him in February ... roughly three months after sending the Cincinnati Bengals a draft pick for his services.
All it took to acquire Wilson from the Bengals was a seventh-round selection, though that's unimportant. The point is that the Cowboys brought him in to be a part of the solution to their defensive woes, albeit for naught. He effectively arrived in Dallas ready to hang up the cleats. which is an indictment of the club's owner and general manager, Jerry Jones.
The idea that Wilson could be a meaningful pickup was a clear misjudgement of where he's at in this stage of his career. Seeing the 29-year-old step away from football shortly after the Cowboys traded for him highlights Jones' notoriously cheap roster-building process.
Logan Wilson's retirement proves Jerry Jones keeps testing his luck at Cowboys' expense
Dallas was fortunate to hit on a few low/medium-risk moves last offseason. Star wide receiver George Pickens, running back Javonte Williams and edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney are all fun success stories (to varying degrees). However, Jones has had far more misses than hits when shopping in the discount aisle, and Wilson's a prime example.
For better or worse, Jones can't get out of his own way. The frugal approach he's shown to putting together a team has reared its ugly head time and again at the Cowboys' expense. Whether it's adding a washed-up vet, trying to hold firm in contractual stalemates and eventually paying more or driving a franchise cornerstone out the door.
Wilson looked like someone ready for "the next chapter of life," as he wrote on Instagram, in Cincinnati. His struggles were what led him to Dallas in the first place. He was benched in favor of Bengals fourth-round rookie Barrett Carter and reportedly asked for a fresh start elsewhere before getting dealt to the Cowboys.
Things didn't get much better for Wilson during his brief stint with the Cowboys. The Wyoming product recorded 24 tackles, one pass deflection, and a forced fumble across seven games. He earned a 52.6 overall Pro Football Focus grade in 2025 (including Bengals splits), which ranked 65th out of 88 qualified linebackers.