There are some important free agents to be on the Cowboys roster.
The Dallas Cowboys’ 30-14 blowout win over the Carolina Panthers had plenty of contributors. Three of the biggest were RB Rico Dowdle, DT Osa Odighizuwa, and CB Jourdan Lewis, all of whom will be free agents in 2025. Their performances remind us that if Dallas wants to progress from this year’s struggles, it can’t take a passive approach to another offseason.
Rico Dowdle
In what’s suddenly become a weekly trend for him, Dowdle set a new career high with 149 rushing yards. Finally getting treated like a true starter in Dallas, and enjoying a series of bad opposing defenses, Dowdle is becoming a hot topic ahead of his first offseason as an unrestricted free agent. And with nobody else on the RB depth chart worthy of replacing him next year, it forces the Cowboys back into deciding how much they want to invest in the position.
Dowdle should feel a sense of loyalty to Dallas after years of their sticking with him through multiple major injuries. But turning 27 in June, Dowdle could hardly be blamed for looking elsewhere if the Cowboys aren’t willing to offer him market value. This offseason is probably his one shot at a multi-million dollar NFL contract, hoping some teams focus on his current production and relatively low mileage instead of his age.
Osa Odighizuwa
A more traditional free agent will be Osa Odighizuwa, who’s closing out his original rookie deal with a strong fourth season. Dallas’ top DT, who sometimes goes unnoticed in the dirty work of the trenches, was very visible on Sunday. With a sack and multiple other hits and pressures on Panthers QB Bryce Young, Odighizuwa played a noticeably huge part in disrupting Carolina’s offense.
Like at RB, there’s no in-house replacement for Odighizuwa if he departs next March. Mazi Smith is the other starting DT and Dallas is hoping he’ll make a big third-year leap. But beyond him are aged veterans like Linval Joseph and Carlos Watkins who can’t be expected to fill the spot and keep the defense solvent.
Odighizuwa should have a strong market. He can play inside in a 4-3 or potentially play DE for a 3-4 team. Just this past Sunday we saw him lining up on the edge in a creative package with Micah Parsons. He’s been consistently effective throughout his career and is standing out now under Mike Zimmer. If the Cowboys are going to stick to a draft-focused philosophy for team building, allowing too many of their homegrown talents to leave after four years isn’t sustainable.
Jourdan Lewis
While older than the last two guys we’ve discussed, Jourdan Lewis is still getting it done as a play-making slot corner. The eight-year veteran deflected the pass that became an Eric Kendricks interception and had a sack later in the game. Lewis has consistently been able to make an impact and brings a lot of toughness for a smaller guy.
Lewis turns 30 next August and that will likely affect interest in his services. In the modern pass-happy NFL, your third corner is essentially a starter and plays way more snaps than your third linebacker. So while you have to be concerned about age with that, you have to keep that balanced with ability and performance. From what we’ve seen this year, Lewis still has plenty to offer.
The Cowboys do have more assets to work with at CB than other positions. Trevon Diggs and DaRon Bland are still here and prospects Caelen Carson and Josh Butler are under contract. But with three of those guys currently injured, and Diggs’ status for 2025 now a point of controversy, Dallas may want to hedge its bet with a reliable guy like Lewis.
There was a time when we could easily predict players like these getting new deals from the Cowboys, but the days of Jerry Jones’ dogged loyalty to his players seem to be over. As Stephen Jones and other voices become more influential in how the team is run, we’re seeing the shift to a more financially conservative and cap-cautious approach. But if the front office learns one lesson from 2024, hopefully it’s that that you get what you pay for. They didn’t invest in the present and have a losing team to show for it.
