The trouble with that approach is the minute those who managed to get the Grey Wolf listed in the first place get wind that any number of wolves are being killed illegally with any real or perceived affect on their population, they'll sue in federal court to have them relisted on the endangered species list.
You gotta get your states to put realistic plans in place to "manage" their numbers; otherwise, you'll be doing yourselves a big disservice in the longrun and the wolf won't stay delisted. It's what MN and now WI have been trying to get control of for decades. We still don't have a clear path to any meaningful reduction in Timber (Gray) Wolf population and dogs, livestock, etc. still keep getting killed within 100 yds or lessof many our homes.
The Federal Gov't does give a crap about people like us in outlying areas. There are so many people who have this Disney view of wolves and other wildlife and think hunting them is out of the question. Well I have a challenge to people like that. Bring your pets and little kids out in the rural area of northern MN and other place of high concentrations of wolves to play. See how they feel and how their attitude about wolves changes the first time a 150 lb alpha male shows up in their clear and snatches their dogs or sizes up their kid.