The San Francisco 49ers made a major addition to their defensive line on Wednesday, acquiring veteran defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa from the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for a third-round selection in the 2026 NFL Draft.
In Odighizuwa, the 49ers will likely be getting an instant starter who can upgrade the defensive line against the pass and the run. But there's more to the 27-year-old Odighizuwa than just football. Here are some things to know about Odighizuwa as he moves on to a new start in the Bay Area.
Why the trade?
Odighizuwa (6-2, 280) has long been a key piece of the Cowboys' defensive line, starting 74 of 86 games since being selected as a third-round pick out of UCLA in the 2021 NFL Draft. But the interior of that line became both overcrowded and expensive, which led the Cowboys to make a move.
The Cowboys added defensive tackle Kenny Clark before the 2025 season as part of the blockbuster trade that sent Micah Parsons from Dallas to the Green Bay Packers. Then they acquired defensive tackle Quinnen Williams in November of 2025. Odighizuwa, Clark, and Williams were due for a combined cap number of over $51 million in 2026. Then, when the Cowboys signed defensive tackle Otito Ogbonnia to a one-year deal earlier this week, the buzz grew that Odighizuwa could be available, and that the 49ers were among the teams interested.
Another factor may have been how Odighizuwa fit (or didn't fit) with new Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker.
"We talked at the combine that Osa didn't like his fit (in) the Cowboys' new scheme," wrote Cowboys reporter Clarence Hill Jr. after the trade was reported. "We also have talked ad nauseam about having three DTs with $20 million plus cap hits."
It all led to the 49ers getting a significant instant upgrade at defensive tackle, one that could pay dividends past the 2026 season.
49ers will be getting much-needed all-around help on the inside
Odighizuwa racked up 216 tackles, 17 sacks, 81 quarterback hits, and 34 tackles for loss in his five seasons with the Cowboys. He's coming off offseason surgery to clean up an elbow issue, according to Hill, but he's been a very durable player in the NFL, playing in every game but one over five seasons. Per Matt Barrows of The Athletic, Odighizuwa finished with 52 quarterback pressures in 2025, which was the 11th-most pressures by an interior defensive lineman, after racking up the sixth-most in 2024 (60). According to NFL Next Gen Stats, Odighizuwa has 32 quarterback pressures when double-teamed since the start of the 2024 season, which is tops in the NFL.
But Odighizuwa can be expected to be impactful against the run as well. NFL analyst Greg Cosell says the 49ers will be getting an excellent all-around defensive tackle in Odighizuwa.
"He's a really good player...Good run defender, has some pass rush skill, just a really good, professional defensive tackle," Cosell told 95.7 The Game. "Clearly an upgrade for them."
Odighizuwa will undoubtedly start for the 49ers, who also have second-year players Alfred Collins and C.J. West returning at the position. Former starting defensive tackle Jordan Elliott departed for a two-year deal with the Tennessee Titans earlier this week, while Kalia Davis's status is also up in the air as he enters free agency.
Odighizuwa is under contract for three more seasons after signing a four-year, $80 million deal with the Cowboys in 2025, although the 49ers would take on no dead money if they walked away from that deal after this season.
Popular Cowboy
Odighizuwa was a favorite of both players and reporters in Dallas. He served as a team captain for the Cowboys and was praised by three of the team's reporters after the trade was announced.
"Osa Odighizuwa and Solomon Thomas: two of the most authentic, selfless, and high-character humans I've ever had the pleasure of meeting. sensational men, and damn good football players as well — in that order," wrote DallasCowboys.com reporter Patrik Walker on Wednesday (Thomas, the former 49er, was traded to the Titans on Wednesday).
Jane Slater of the NFL Network wrote, "Hate seeing one of my locker room favorites go. He was so incredible in the aftermath of Marshawn Kneeland's death. Carrying his flag literally every game."
As Slater alluded to, Odighizuwa was the one to carry a flag onto the field with Kneeland's number (94) on it after the defensive lineman died in 2025. He also carried Kneeland's jersey after a home game against the Eagles, following Kneeland's death, as shown below in another tribute by Fort Worth Star-Telegram writer Nick Harris.
Osa Odighizuwa was a stand-up human for all five of his seasons in Dallas. From a culture standpoint, this is one of the biggest losses the team could have taken.
When Marshawn Kneeland passed away, he was on the frontlines waving the 94 flag and galvanizing the guys around him.… pic.twitter.com/QP4KJvVaKS
— Nick Harris (@NickHarrisFWST) March 11, 2026
Top-notch athlete
Football wasn't the only avenue to college for Odighizuwa. He also won three state championships in wrestling at David Douglas High School in Portland, posting a 91-0 overall record as a junior and senior.
Odighizuwa told the Pat McAfee Show in 2025 that he had scholarship offers for wrestling, but in the end, it became a springboard to his NFL career.
"I definitely, definitely can credit my wrestling career for a lot of football success," Odighizuwa said, via the Dallas News. "[it helped shape] me mentally to be the person I am today — but no, you will not catch me doing any WWE. Not to disrespect the WWE, I just know it's not actual wrestling."
Mental health advocate
The Odighizuwa family has faced a significant amount of adversity over the years. Odighizuwa is one of four siblings who were raised by his mother, Abieyuwa, after his father, Peter, shot six people at the Appalachian School of Law in 2002, killing three.
A native of Nigeria, Abieyuwa faced the challenge of caring for her children after Peter was sent to prison. As a nurse, Abieyuwa moved from Brooklyn to Ohio, where Osa was born, then eventually to Portland, Oregon, where the family settled.
It was revealed after the shooting that Peter Odighizuwa, who went on his shooting rampage after finding out he was failing in school, had mental health issues that kept him from standing trial. Then, Osa's older brother Owa, who overcame a turbulent childhood that saw him bounce back and forth between Nigeria and the US to become an NFL defensive end with the Giants and Bills, saw his career come to an early end after dealing with mental health problems that arose during his career.
Osa, who has said he does not experience mental health challenges of his own, helped his brother with his mental health battle and also announced himself to be a mental health advocate as a rookie in 2021, providing some mental health tips online through the NFLPA.
"Mental health is definitely something that has grown in importance to me over my lifetime as I've realized how real the effects of it can be, witnessing firsthand how it can affect people in my family and also very close friends of mine that struggle with it as well," Osa said in 2021. "So I think it is important that people touch on it and we as a society acknowledge it because there's so many people that go undiagnosed."