Cowboys Veteran Parris Campbell Retires after 7 NFL Seasons

On Wednesday, Cowboys veteran wide receiver Parris Campbell was moved to the reserved/retired list, marking the end of a seven-year NFL career.

Dallas initially signed Campbell in March 2025 to a one-year deal, but he didn’t make the team when rosters were cut down to 53 in the summer. He was brought back to the team in October to the practice squad, and signed a futures deal this January to stay.

While he never made much of an impact with the Cowboys, Campbell’s football career, in its totality, was solid in the NFL, and special at Ohio State.

Parris Campbell: Ohio State Star, NFC East Traveler

Most football fans remember Campbell from being a highly-touted second-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft or from his time as a Buckeye in Columbus.

In college, he won a national championship in a redshirt season before kicking off his playing journey in 2015. It took a bit for things to fully come together, but in his fifth-year senior season, Campbell took off and recorded 12 receiving touchdowns, leading the Big Ten.

He received first-team All-Big Ten for that season, and had second and third team honors the prior two years.

The Indianapolis Colts made Campbell the 59th pick in the draft after that stellar season, and a 4.31 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine. He struggled to stay on the field with injuries through his first three seasons before becoming a full-time starter in 2022.

Ohio State WR Parris Campbell showed off track speed with a 4.31 40-yard dash at 205 lbs, tied for the fastest time through the first two days of the 2019 #NFLCombine.

Campbell set the Ohio Division II state record in the 60-meter dash at the 2013 indoor championships (6.85). pic.twitter.com/iUHa8rJRrl

— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) March 3, 2019

That year became the bulk of the career stats for Parris, as he totaled over 600 yards on 91 targets; ultimately, Indy didn’t bring him back, and he signed a one-year deal with the New York Giants.

While he did play in 12 games for New York, he only recorded 20 catches, failing to follow up his career year with another big campaign. It is fair to say that was the beginning of the end, as he recorded just six more games played following his Giants tenure.

He was brought on by the Philadelphia Eagles in 2024, and he recorded a touchdown with them. When Philly won the Lombardi Trophy in the 2025 postseason, Campbell acquired the title of Super Bowl Champion.

As previously mentioned, he finished out his tour of the NFC East with Dallas, signing first last spring, and ending his career as a Cowboy yesterday.

The career of Parris Campbell won’t be mentioned all that much in the record books, and some have even called him a bust; it’s important to remember, however, that this career comes to an astronomically low percentage of athletes with dreams of playing in the NFL.

Salute to you on a great run, Mr. Campbell.