FRISCO — Losing can wear a man down. The constant defeats at home and on the road for a dysfunctional franchise can leave you looking for something new.
Quinnen Williams, a talented defensive tackle, had seen enough. It was clear he sought a new place of employment after playing seven seasons with the New York Jets.
The Cowboys were trying to obtain Williams before the start of the 2025 season but were rebuffed by Jets team owner Woody Johnson.
Jerry Jones kept trying. And when the Cowboys owner and his front office made another call at the trade deadline, they got Williams.
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On Tuesday, the Cowboys gave up a second-round pick in 2026, a first-rounder in 2027 and defensive tackle Mazi Smith for Williams at the trade deadline.
It’s a fresh start for the three-time Pro Bowl and one-time All-Pro player, who instantly improves the defensive line.
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But it doesn’t mask the frustration he leaves behind with the Jets.
“As an ultra-competitor, I think anybody who’s going through many, many losses like I was going through, there’s going to be frustration,” he said Wednesday at The Star. “I know guys who go they whole life and they lose one game, they be frustrated. So, of course, I was frustrated, but the relationship that I had with [coach Aaron Glenn]. The relationship with the GM Darren [Mougey], there, man, there’s still great relationships. They knew I was frustrated. I think the world knew I was frustrated being there so long and still losing.”
In seven seasons, Williams had three different head coaches, four if you count the interim. He was also coached by three defensive coordinators. In games that he played, the Jets went 31-67. There was a 0-6 start this season.
He played on teams that lost a combined 24 games in the 2020 and 2021 seasons.
Glenn, a former Cowboys cornerback, is trying to change the culture for the Jets franchise.
Again.
The Jets are 1-7 this season and have begun a yard sale. Gone is Sauce Gardner, the talented cornerback traded to the Colts. And now Williams is playing for the Cowboys.
“Yeah, the staff kind of changed the focus on the last 24 hours on what’s going there,” Williams said. “But I just know in the past, man, the things that AG has been preaching up there, the things that he’s been talking about are great things man. It’s going to change that thing around, and the guys who buy in and listen to him, like I was, buying in and listening to him, it’s going to push that thing in the right direction. So I’m just super, super excited to be a part of his legacy there and of his coaching and his standard there.”
He’s got a new team with the Cowboys, who have their own set of challenges. Dallas is 3-5-1 on the season and entered the bye week on a two-game losing streak. Williams joins a team that has the second-best offense in the NFL, but its defense has struggled.
The Cowboys have the 31st-ranked defense in the NFL.
Williams believes he’ll be a difference because anything is better than where he came from.
This season, Williams has forced three fumbles, made 32 tackles, hit the quarterback three times and has seven tackles for loss. Williams is one of the best run-stoppers in the NFL. According to ESPN Analytics, which uses player tracking data from NextGen Stats, Williams is second in the NFL among defensive tackles in run stop win rate at 47%. The Cowboys’ Solomon Thomas is tops at 48%. Yet, Williams has been involved in 131 run plays compared to Thomas’ 96.
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Williams didn’t stop playing hard with the Jets and was complimentary of the organization on his way out the door.
He just yearns for something else.
“Yeah, I’m hungry to win,” Williams said. “I’m hungry to win. That’s the main thing. Like I said in the beginning, I’m an ultimate competitor, man. Everything I do is about winning. Everything I do, everything I work when I wake up man, I just want to win. So that kind of forms my ego of I can do anything the coaches [want] me to do if it’s going to get us a win.”
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