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Free agency is time of comings and goings for NFL teams. Underperformers and poor fits typically leave, ideally replaced by higher performers and those who appear to be better fits. Coaching changes, like the kind the Dallas Cowboys are currently undergoing, can spark extra churn on the free agency front.
Different coaches run different schemes, and since not all players fit all schemes, changes have to be made in personnel. The Kris Richard days are a perfect example. Richard, hailing from the Seattle defensive coaching tree, was a heavy Cover 1 and Cover 3 coach. Since his scheme demanded the most from his boundary cornerbacks, the Cowboys made an aggressive effort to replace their standard sized CBs with long and lean alternatives who were better equipped to handle the demands of Richard’s scheme.
In 2025 the Cowboys have brought in Matt Eberflus to lead the defense. Like Richard, Eberflus has a particular brand of football he prefers and populates his roster accordingly. His brand happens to be on par with the direction most of the NFL has been trending in recent seasons: bend but don’t break.
The pendulum has swung from the single-high looks and landed all the way on the other side of the schoolyard at the Vic Fangio 2-high. Eberflus’ defense, much like Rod Marinelli’s many years ago, plays with the middle of the field open. It lives in nickel personnel and disguises very little. It relies on a handful of key positions to make it all work and one of key positions is up for review this March in free agency.
Aside from needing a dominant edge rusher, the Eberflus defense relies heavily on the 3-tech defensive tackle to provide most of the pressure. Micah Parsons, presumably in Dallas forever, has the edge position locked down. He’s one of the best edge players in the NFL and gives Eberflus everything he needs from either side of the defensive line. The 3-tech DT, aka under tackle, is considerably more unsettled.
Osa Odighizuwa is about to enter free agency. With four years of service under his belt, he’s unrestricted in his availability and free to go to the highest bidder. It’s difficult to estimate for sure what the market will be for the UCLA product but as one of the most accomplished interior pressure players in the NFL, he’s likely to approach top 10 money at DT.
With just 13.5 career sacks, it’s easy to take Odighizuwa for granted. Sacks are king in most minds and not everyone cares that Odighizuwa ranked fifth in pressures last season (tracked by Pro Football Focus). But care they should, because pressures are a far more stable statistic year to year than sacks and pressures are what Eberflus needs to make his defense work.
Prior to 2024 there was concern Odighizuwa didn’t have the conditioning to make it through and entire 17 game NFL season. In previous years he faded down the stretch and wasn’t the same difference maker when games seemingly mattered the most. In 2024 that changed with him actually performing better down the stretch, thriving most in the back half of the year.
Replacing Odighizuwa in a single season will be next to impossible if the Cowboys choose to go that route. Unless Dallas trades up for Michigan DT Mason Graham, they probably won’t find a plug-and-play rookie 3-tech like Odighizuwa would otherwise offer them.
The new coaching staff needs certain competencies in place to make their systems work and one of those competencies for Eberflus’ defense is to have an explosive pressure player at 3-tech.