This Homegrown Cowboy is a Free Agent Priority

The Dallas Cowboys have a homegrown player who is their priority free agent.

The Cowboys have taken significant steps to improve their defense, starting with hiring high-energy Defensive Coordinator Matt Eberflus.

One issue is that the defense needs to sign one of their stars, who will play a major role in a defense that expects to create pressure with the front four.

Micah Parsons is the most important chess piece on the defensive side, but Parsons will need help, and that is where Osa Odighizuwa can lend a hand.

Odighizuwa is set to become a highly sought-after free agent among several teams throughout the NFL, and the Cowboys can stop him from reaching free agency if Jerry Jones steps up.

Osa Odighizuwa Will Be a Hot Commodity

Osa Odighizuwa, 26, is one of the best defensive tackles in the NFL. He may not be a household name, but front offices around the league have noticed his potential superstar trajectory.

“Not exactly a house-hold name nationally (yet), but this likely ends up being the contract that turns heads in the coming weeks,” wrote Spotrac’s Michael Ginnitti. The 3rd Round pick out of UCLA could be considered the best interior defensive linemen on the open market, with a three-year, $63M projection in our system.”

According to Marcus Mosher, the New York Giants, Washington Commanders, and Cincinnati Bengals could be among the top teams to start the bidding war for Osa Odighizuwa.

Losing a key defensive player to any team, much less an NFC rival, would be devastating to a new defense predicated on an interior pass rush.

A Contract to Reset the Market

The contract with Osa Odighizuwa will reset the defensive tackle market.

The defensive tackles set to hit the market do not have the talent to match Odighizuwa, so he will get the market high.

Other defensive tackles set to be free agents are Poona Ford (29), Calais Campbell (39), B.J. Hill (30), Teair Tart (28), and Mike Hoecht (27).

There are several others, but these seem to be at the top of most lists.

Odighizuwa is better than or equal to any one of these players.

What will the contract look like?

Because he is the defensive tackle leading all interior defenders on the soon-to-be free-agent market in quarterback hits, his price tag will exceed $20 million a year.

The bidding will begin at $20 million and increase from there.

Last year, Christian Wilkins signed a 4-year $110 million deal with the Las Vegas Raiders. On average, he earns $27.5 million.

Wilkins is 29 years old, and his stats in 2023, the year before he signed with Las Vegas at age 28, were 23 quarterback hits, 65 combined tackles, nine sacks, 10 tackles for a loss, and two forced fumbles.

In comparison, Odighizuwa had 23 quarterback hits, 47 combined tackles, 4.5 sacks, five tackles for a loss, and one forced fumble.

He’s lower in some of the stats, but he’s also 26 and does not have the wear and tear from only four seasons of NFL football on his body.

With that in mind, Osa Odighizuwa could see a contract in the $28-$29 million range on the high end. More realistically, it will be around the $21 million mark.

Jerry Jones Will Be Jerry Jones

We all know Jerry Jones talks a big game regarding free-agent signings.

Fans also know he likes to keep the players he drafted. The only problem is that he does not sign them early and watches the price tag increase.

This will probably be the case when trying to resign Odighizuwa.

Jerry Jones will talk about him being a priority, which is what Jori Jori Epstein has said, “the Cowboys will look to extend pending free agent DT Osa Odighizuwa this offseason.”

She adds that owner Jerry Jones called a new deal for Odighizuwa a “priority.”

The needed defensive tackle could price himself out of Dallas, and it would fall solely on Jerry Jones’ refusal to open the checkbook.

It is the same old story with the Dallas Cowboys, who wait to sign in-house free agents until the price tag is astronomical.

Signing these players to big contracts gives the front office an excuse not to sign outside free agents.

This is the Cowboys’ philosophy, and it will continue this year. Don’t expect big-time signings; expect the same from a Cowboys front office that doesn’t really want to win; they just want to make money.