According to the NFL Players Association, the average NFL career lasts approximately 3.3 years – meaning 13 seasons is beyond extraordinary.
That’s how long former Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins played before announcing his retirement on Thursday.
The Giants selected Hankins with a 2nd-round pick (No. 49 overall) in the 2013 NFL Draft. He played for the Cowboys in 2022 and 2023, with 14 starts in 2023.
“Veteran DT Johnathan Hankins tells me he is retiring from the NFL after 12 seasons,” NFL insider Jordan Schultz wrote on his official X account on Thursday. “An outstanding career for the former 2nd-round pick out of Ohio State, who was drafted by the Giants and also played for the Colts, Raiders, Cowboys, and Seahawks. Hankins appeared in 169 career games and was among the league’s premier run-stuffing interior defensive linemen.”
Hankins was a full-time starter for the Giants for 3 seasons, from 2014 to 2016, and started all 16 regular-season games in 2014 and 2016. He also played for the Indianapolis Colts, Las Vegas Raiders, and Seattle Seahawks.
Hankins missed the entire 2025 season with the Seahawks following an offseason back injury. The Seahawks released him on December 3 — just 2 months before Seattle won the Super Bowl. He finished his career with 142 starts in 169 career games.
“Guys like Hankins never got the flashiest stat lines, but ask any linebacker or defensive coordinator having a guy who ate up double teams for 169 games is invaluable,” Jess Hoops wrote on their official X account. “Hell of a career for the Ohio State product!”
Hankins Only Played 3 Seasons of College Football
Hankins, 6-foot-3 and 335 pounds, played 3 seasons at Ohio State and left school early to enter the NFL Draft after he earned All-Big Ten and All-American honors in 2012.
He seemed on the verge of becoming a star in his 2nd season when he started all 16 games and finished with a career-high 7.0 sacks and was named to the Pro Football Focus NFL All-Pro Team. In 2015, Hankins only played 9 games after he suffered a season-ending torn pectoral muscle.
“Hankins recorded 433 total tackles, 239 solo, 44 TFL, 18.5 sacks, 3 FF, 3 FR, 13 PBUs, and 1 INT in 169 career games and 142 starts,” Football Forever wrote on its official X account.
In 13 seasons, Hankins finishes with approximately $36.9 million in career earnings.
Cowboys Made 2 Massive Trades for DTs
On paper at least, the Cowboys should have the NFL’s best interior defensive line duo behind the Philadelphia Eagles, who have a pair of Super Bowl winners in Jordan Davis and NFL All-Pro Jalen Carter.
The Cowboys got both of their starters at defensive tackle via blockbuster trades.
First, they obtained 2-time Pro Bowler Kenny Clark from the Green Bay Packers as part of the Micah Parsons trade before the 2025 season. Next, the Cowboys traded a pair of 1st-round picks to the New York Jets in exchange for NFL All-Pro Quinnen Williams at the 2025 NFL trade deadline.
Despite those additions, the Cowboys still finished 7-9-1 and missed the playoffs for the second consecutive season.
“Three former Jets’ first-round picks were selected to this year’s Pro Bowl, all now with other teams,” NFL on ESPN wrote on its official X account in December 2025. “2015: Leonard Williams (SEA), 2018: Sam Darnold (SEA), 2019: Quinnen Williams (DAL).”
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