Osa Odighizuwa #97 of the Dallas Cowboys
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Osa Odighizuwa #97 of the Dallas Cowboys
Since the Dallas Cowboys signed starting defensive lineman Osa Odighizuwa to a new, four-year, $80 million contract last offseason, much has changed. The Cowboys subsequently added Kenny Clark in the trade that sent Micah Parsons to Green Bay. At the trade deadline, they added another defensive lineman, All-Pro Quinnen Williams from the Jets. And at the end of the season, they primed themselves for a complete defensive overhaul with new defensive coordinator Christian Parker replacing the fired Matt Eberflus.
Each of those moves raised some questions about whether the team was really committed to keeping Odighizuwa over the long term. The addition of new players seemed to nudge Odighizuwa more and more to the side, and the change in scheme could make him even more irrelevant.
So while there has been much hand-wringing over the moves the Cowboys have made–or not made–here in the early going of NFL free agency, one of the next big transactions that could hit for Dallas is a trade that sends Odighizuwa out.
49ers Inquiring About Osa Odighizuwa
According to Nick Harris, the Cowboys beat writer for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Odighizuwa already has a credible suitor on the trade market–the San Francisco 49ers.
Here’s what Harris wrote late Tuesday evening: “The Dallas Cowboys are receiving calls inquiring about veteran defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa and his potential availability on the trade market, according to multiple sources. Two league sources say that the San Francisco 49ers are among the teams that have made contact with Dallas. CBS Sports was the first to report Odighizuwa’s interest on the trade market.”
Of course, there had been ample talk last week, as the Cowboys were chasing Raiders pass-rusher Maxx Crosby, that Odighizuwa was part of the package the Cowboys were seeking to send to las Vegas. It’s unlikely that the Cowboys and Raiders will re-engage on Crosby trade talks now that his deal to Baltimore has been rescinded, but the signs that Dallas would part with Odighizuwa were there.
Cowboys New System Is Bad News
On Tuesday, the Cowboys probably sent their strongest signal that they will be moving off of Odighizuwa when they signed nose tackle Otito Ogbonnia. Additionally, amid rumors that the Cowboys could release Kenny Clark and save cap space, the Cowboys instead chose to tinker with Clark’s deal, ensuring he stays put for 2026.
They did not restructure Odighizuwa’s contract, though.
Parker, last month, explained in an appearance on 105.3 The Fan radio in Dallas what the plan was at defensive line, and Parker raved about Clark, who was on the Packers when Parker was the defensive quality control coach in 2019-20.
“Up front, you want guys to be aggressive because you have to convert to pass-rush and everything like that,” Parker said. “So when you think about, when I was in Green Bay with (Kenny Clark), he was the best nose in football, in my opinion, at doing this style because he plays with good length and he has a good anchor.
“Quinnen Williams, this is how he played at Alabama, this is what (Nick) Saban does in the mid-front and everything else with that. You’re getting guys off the ball, it’s just how you play the blocks in the run game, restricting that space.”