The Dallas Cowboys headed into the 2025 offseason suggesting they might reconsider their top heavy spending. Out of the gate, they could spend big to keep one of their own.
Coach Brian Schottenheimer was asked Thursday at the NFL Scouting Combine about reports that the Cowboys were inching toward a deal to keep pending free agent defensive lineman Osa Odighizuwa.
"I think there's a lot of ongoing conversations," Schottenheimer said, via the team's official website. "Obviously, Osa has done a terrific job for us. He's a terrific young player. He does everything right, and as the communications keep going. It's never done until it's done, but he'd be a guy we'd love to have back."
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Thursday that sides are "not particularly close, but they're working to try and somehow get this done."
Odighizuwa is poised to be one of the top free agents available when the market opens on March 12. Along with Milton Williams of Philadelphia, Odighizuwa represents the top of a shallow defensive tackle market. Given the position and talent, each is projected to land deals north of $20-plus million per season.
Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones noted this week that Dallas would be "selectively aggressive" this offseason. Paying Odighizuwa with Micah Parsons' big contract still to be done would certainly qualify.
The Cowboys would be woefully thin if they allowed Odighizuwa to leave in free agency. An already gaunt Dallas D-line would essentially be left with Mazi Smith and little else.
"As you look at it, you always wanna look at your own roster first. So, who can we bring back? Who are the guys that we feel like are cornerstones of what we're trying to get done?" Schottenheimer said. "I believe in this … I think that there's talent acquisition, which is adding players -- whether they're internal, external, whatever that is."
A penetrator, Odighizuwa, 26, has proven he can be productive regardless of the circumstances. His combination of talent, production and age gets paid. The question is whether it's by Dallas or someone else.
