Cowboys’ 2024 free agent profile: DT Osa Odighizuwa

The Dallas Cowboys have a protracted record of free brokers who will formally hit the open market in a bit over two months. Of the sixteen, many had been vital contributors in 2024, that means the Cowboys have some troublesome choices forward of them within the subsequent two months.

At the moment, in our free agent profile sequence, we check out an impending free agent. It’s a participant who was one of many Cowboys’ greatest performers this season, defensive deal with, Osa Odighizuwa.

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2024 Common Season Stats: 17G, 60 whole pressures, 39 QB Hurries, 14 QB Hits, 7.0 Sacks, 30 Stops, 78.5 Move-Rush Grade, 1 Pressured Fumble

Yr Evaluation: Osa Odighizuwa put collectively essentially the most full season of his profession this 12 months, sustaining persistently stable play all through the whole lot of the 17-game common season. The previous third-rounder picked the proper time for a profession 12 months, recording career-highs in whole pressures, quarterback hurries/hits, and sacks.

Odighizuwa ended up ending within the prime 5 amongst all defensive tackles in these three classes, together with being third within the league along with his 60 whole pressures. The 26-year-old had a minimum of 4 pressures in 9 video games, and completed the season taking part in his greatest ball of the 12 months, recording 32 whole pressures over Dallas’ final seven common season video games.

Odighizuwa absolutely displayed how disruptive he may be, proving to be the most effective pass-rushing defensive tackles in all of soccer. This season couldn’t have come at a greater time for the 26-year-old as he’s set to hit free company this March and shall be one of many hottest commodities on the open market.

Free Company Outlook: After the 12 months he had, Odighizuwa has quite a lot of issues going for him Some of the impactful would be the lack of difference-makers at defensive deal with on this 12 months’s free company class. You possibly can make a stable argument that Odighizuwa is the most efficient participant on the place set to hit free company this March.

Final offseason, Christian Wilkins signed the most important deal for a defensive deal with in free company, agreeing to a four-year, $110M contract with the Las Vegas Raiders. Odighizuwa’s contract-year efficiency is corresponding to what Wilkins did earlier than coming into free company after the 2023 season, but it surely’s arduous to see a group providing him a contract price over $27M a 12 months yearly.

The following two greatest offers signed by defensive tackles final offseason had been Grover Stewart returning to the Colts on a three-year, $39M deal and Justin Jones going to Arizona for 3 years, $31M. Stewart is primarily a run-stopping defensive deal with, however Jones is a really comparable participant to Odighizuwa. Jones was 27 when he signed his free-agent deal, that means Odighizuwa shall be virtually a full 12 months youthful with even higher contract 12 months statistics.

It’s protected to imagine Odighizuwa will need to surpass the offers each Jones and Stewart signed, and with the dearth of expertise on the place group in free company he must be a lock to take action. If a group actually wants a defensive deal with, they could be prepared to supply Odighizuwa a 3 or four-year deal price anyplace from $13-16M yearly.

Cowboys Verdict: You possibly can make a really stable argument that retaining Osa Odighizuwa must be Dallas’ primary precedence this offseason. If the Cowboys had been to let the 26-year-old stroll, their defensive deal with group can be by far the worst within the NFL.

With all of the wants elsewhere on the roster, Dallas can’t afford to as soon as once more fully overhaul the defensive deal with place. In the event that they had been to convey Odighizuwa again, the Cowboys might concentrate on pairing him with a less expensive, run-stopping defensive deal with in free company as a substitute of being compelled to spend a premium draft choose on the place.

Dallas has the cap house, so irrespective of the associated fee they need to concentrate on locking Odighizuwa up earlier than he’s capable of hit free company and doubtlessly get a proposal the Cowboys couldn’t match.

Prediction: Osa Odighizuwa indicators a four-year, $56M contract with the Dallas Cowboys