Cowboys Waive LB Logan Wilson

The Cowboys were hoping that Logan Wilson could stabilize the middle of their defense when they acquired him at the 2025 trade deadline.

The trade did not work out, as the veteran linebacker struggled to make an impact in Dallas. He has now been waived before the 2026 league year, per team reporter Tommy Yarrish.

Wilson, 29, was a 2020 third-round pick by the Bengals. He emerged as a reliable starter during his rookie contract and earned a four-year, $36MM extension as a result. He showed signs of regression in 2024 before undergoing season-ending knee surgery. Wilson was then usurped by rookie linebackers Demetrius Knight and Barrett Carter in 2025, leading him to demand a trade out of Cincinnati.

By that time, his trade value had plummeted, and the Bengals could only get a 2026 seventh-rounder from the Cowboys. But Wilson only logged 24 tackles in seven games (50% snap share) in Dallas and could not carve out a full-time role.

The Cowboys will free up $6.5MM with the move, per Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap, but they still have plenty of work to do before becoming cap-compliant for the new league year. Dallas will also need to find more linebacker depth with only DeMarvion Overshown, Marist Liufau, and Shemar James under contract in 2026. Their specific needs at the position may also change with new defensive coordinator Christian Parker and his move away from a 4-3 defense and towards a “multiple” scheme that will be a 3-4 “by nature.”

Wilson, meanwhile, will join a free agent class that has several veteran linebackers with similar profiles. After his regression in the last two years, Wilson may have to take a much cheaper ‘prove it’ deal to rebuild his value and help him establish a second chapter of his career in the NFL.