FRISCO, Texas — Dallas Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee has announced his retirement, ending an 11-season professional career with the team.
Lee, 34, struggled with injuries for much of his career. But when he was healthy he was one of the league's best linebackers, making the Pro Bowl twice and ranking eight in Dallas team history with 995 career tackles.
The former Penn State standout led the team in tackles in 2011 and 2015-17 and is credited with five of the top seven single-game tackle marks in team history, including a team-record 22 tackles against the New York Giants in 2016.
But he often battled injuries, missing significant playing time over the years with knee, hamstring, neck, toe, wrist and core-muscle injuries and concussions. He was limited to nine games in the 2020 season after undergoing a sports hernia surgery injury in September, but returned to action late in the season.
His departure becomes the third significant move since the end of the season. Defensive lineman Tyrone Crawford elected to retire after the season, ending a nine-season NFL career. And Dallas has moved on from 16-year long-snapper L.P. Ladouceur.
