For Brian Schottenheimer, taking over the Dallas Cowboys was more than just a head coaching job. As soon as he was hired, Scottenheimer knew the change the team was looking for had to begin from beyond the locker room. And as fate would have it, one of those perfect instances arrived last season, two months after he was hired. Defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa had just signed a four-year, $80 million deal in March 2025 to remain with Dallas and was headed to a restaurant in Frisco to celebrate with family.

It was the perfect opportunity for Odighizuwa to give his single mother, who once worked night shifts as a nursing assistant in Portland, her perfect retirement. The significance of the event was not lost on Schottenheimer either. In fact, when the head coach found out, he even sent a bottle of champagne to the restaurant, initiating one of the most endearing player-coach relationships. And this is probably why it also hurt Scottenheimer the most when that same player was traded to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for the 92 overall pick in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft, exactly a year later.

“Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said he and Osa Odighizuwa cried during their phone call after Osa was traded to the 49ers,” reported The Athletic’s Jon Machota on X.

Schottenheimer also further noted the heartbreak.

“Anytime you go through a scheme change, that’s going to be adjustments where you move on from an incredible person, incredible leader in Osa. That was one of the hard ones,” he said. “I’m happy to share with you guys, I wept. We both wept on the phone together. It was hard but that’s the nature of the business and I’m thrilled that he’s going to a place that is a great fit for him.”

Unfortunately, personal feelings ultimately paled in comparison to the deal’s benefits.

In simple words, the 49ers were badly in need of a robust interior pass rusher after recording just 20 sacks last season, a league low. The Cowboys, on the other hand, already had Kenny Clark and Quinnen Williams, making Odighizuwa dispensable. Even from a salary cap perspective, the trade couldn’t have come at a better time for Jerry Jones.

As per reports, Dallas needed to remove $4 million from its 2026 salary cap expenses (with Odighizuwa’s trade slashing $4.75 million) by Wednesday to adhere to the limit. As for San Francisco, the Cowboys player’s $16.75 million in 2026 pay was, in fact, somewhat of a discount compared to defensive tackle John Franklin-Myers’ $21 million, who they lost to the Tennessee Titans. Even from a talent perspective, Odighizuwa is certainly a valuable addition to their roster.

The 49ers finished last in the NFL in sacks per game (1.2), 31st in pressures, and 29th in pass rush win rate (29.2%). Despite combining for 516 pass-rush snaps last season, starters Kalia Davis and Jordan Elliott added only 0.5 sacks. Therefore, adding a 27-year-old starter with 3.5 sacks in 2025 for a mid-round pick represents strong value for an immediate impact player.

Though he finishes the season with just 17 sacks, he still recorded top-10 finishes in pass-rush productivity, pressures, win rate, and quarterback hits. What’s more, the 27-year-old had more pressures (52) last season than the 2025 49ers’ defensive tackles combined (51), and also ranked ahead (No.7) of Franklin Myers (No. 10) in pass-rushing productivity. In the past four seasons with the Cowboys, Odighizuwa had 76 starts where he recorded 216 tackles (34 tackles for loss), 17 sacks, and a pass deflection. In the last two seasons, he posted 112 quarterback pressures, highlighting his defensive capabilities.

Yet, for Jerry Jones, even the best players have a limited validity in his roster.

Jerry Jones defends Odighizuwa trade

Hours after the trade, the Dallas Cowboys owner made sure he provided an explanation of what led to Osa Odighizuwa’s departure.

“We needed to spread it around a little bit on what we have available to us with (the salary cap). More importantly, we can put it in some places that probably get more mileage out of what it’s done,” he reportedly said. “That’s not taking anything away from him individually, but we’ve got two outstanding football players (Quinnen Williams, Kenny Clark), we have other backup players, plus we don’t want to rule out drafting a player. So, we thought that was the best move.”

The 83-year-old also shared his honest thoughts about his former player.

“(Odighizuwa) has such high character. He’s done such an amazing job in his career. You could say, ‘Well, aren’t you going the wrong way when people of his quality, his caliber, aren’t on the team?’ But that’s the reason we were able to get what we thought was a really beneficial result for the team. We got the (third-round draft pick). (That pick) will be very helpful to us. And (that) also lets us put those resources that we’re going to spend there in some other spots we need help.”

That said, hopefully the trade turns out as good on the gridiron as it did on paper for the two teams.