After what felt like a year-long wait, the Dallas Cowboys and defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa reached agreement Tuesday on a four-year, $80 million deal that includes $58 million guaranteed and a $20 million signing bonus.
Odighizuwa’s agent Sam Leaf Ireifej negotiated and confirmed the deal.
Let me start by saying, I thought this deal would be a lot more, and the fact that they got it at this price a week ahead of time deserves some props for the first time in forever.
Probably helped that they had the power of the tag on their side, but it’s still an improvement on the usual timelines in Dallas.
We kept hearing the Cowboys may pay him $23 plus a year, so getting a very productive player who stays on the field every single year at the price they did is awesome.
Not a huge guarantee either, so this is a win-win for me.
Solid Deal
Diving into this deal just a bit more, Odighizuwa finished No. 1 in QB hits last year and fourth in pass-rush win rate among interior defensive lineman.
In four NFL seasons, DT Osa Odighizuwa has missed just one game and accounted for 172 tackles and 13.5 sacks.
His 78.5 pass rush grade in 2024, according to Pro Football Focus, ranked 11th out of 219 interior defensive linemen across the NFL.
This deal makes Osa Odighizuwa now the 14th highest-paid DT in the NFL per AVY. Getting this deal done at this price for much less than what everyone thought they were going to pay for him is awesome.
It may even become a steal for the Dallas Cowboys. They are returning a huge part of the defense that they will need, and getting the deal done at the price they did will allow them to either bring back a few more guys, or maybe even pair someone next to him.
What Is Next?
The Cowboys have the NFL draft coming up in April, but it would be great if they could get out ahead and get Micah Parsons done and not wait forever for them to do this.
It was said this week that new contract talks have started, and now that this Osa deal is done they can focus all the attention to Micah.
Parsons is still on his rookie contract and is set to carry a $24 million cap hit for the 2025 season after Dallas picked up his fifth-year option in April 2024.
He’s currently set to enter free agency at the end of the 2025 season.
ESPN’s Dan Graziano predicted that Parsons would receive a four-year extension worth $180 million.
The $45 million average annual value would make him the highest-paid edge-rusher in the NFL, surpassing San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa’s $34 million per year (via Spotrac).
Nonetheless, the Dallas Cowboys finally got a deal done ahead of time and got it for a good price for a really good player.
This might be the first time I have been happy with the front office and the way they handled this process.
Jerry did not speak at the NFL combine just last week, he kept his head down, got this deal done and got it at a GREAT price.
Let’s see if this continues and maybe Jerry was finally tired of the backlash, but I am also not going to let one deal that he got done right and early change my thoughts.
This team still needs a lot of work done, but this is the best start any of us fans could have asked for.
One step at a time, but this is the right direction for once in most of our lives.