49ers address poor pass rush, acquire Cowboys defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa (paywall)
“The Cowboys traded Odighizuwa a year after they signed him to a four-year, $80 million contract extension following a career-best 4.5 sacks in 2024. Since doing so, however, Dallas has invested heavily in their defensive line by acquiring three Pro Bowl players — Quinnen Williams, Kenny Clark and Rashan Gary — while trading All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons.”
Insane stat shows Osa Odighizuwa is one of the most dominant DTs
“Odighizuwa generated 32 pressures when double-teamed since the start of 2024. That’s the second-most in the league over that span behind only Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Kobie Turner. Odighizuwa’s 9.1 percent pressure rate on double-teams is also the third-highest in that span, per NGS.”
5 things to know about new 49ers DT Osa Odighizuwa
“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.”
Family matters: Why Osa Odighizuwa wants to advocate for mental health
“When Owa finally opened up, he described symptoms that Osa had been studying in his Sociology of Mental Illness class. Osa told his older brother about the class, and that he was hearing a textbook definition of depression from Owa’s admissions.
“I was like, ‘Yeah, bro, you might have some depression you’re dealing with. That’s what it sounds like,” Osa said. “… He said, ‘You think so?’ He hadn’t thought anything of it.”
Owa has sometimes wondered what might have become of his father had his dad gotten an early diagnosis and professional support. Peter Odighizuwa benefitted from neither. While Osa is too young to have a memory of his father’s behavior, Owa recalls nothing resembling coherence.
“We spent most of our time with him, in my memory, when he was not in his right mind,” he said.
Among the things Osa told Owa he’d learned in his mental health class was that people with mental illness need to first acknowledge the problem, and an admission like that requires at least one confidant who won’t be judgmental. Neither of the boys were ever in a position to help their father, but now they can be that confidant for one another.
Owa said he doesn’t even recall the drive-thru conversation as a seminal moment, but Osa knows this much: The next time he saw his brother, he’d opened up to more members of the family, got professionally diagnosed and had begun seeing a therapist.
Osa, who graduated last June with a Sociology degree, got a “B” in his Sociology of Mental Illness class. But he earned an “A” in how to apply it.”
Top 50 Big Board Update: Post-Combine Rankings (paywall)
“You’ll notice three linebackers on there. Frankly, I had to hold myself back from putting Kyle Louis and Kaleb Elarms-Orr over Anthony Hill Jr. I think those two are absolute studs. I don’t want to get into too much on them before the draft guide, but their coverage abilities are outstanding. And they have the dip to get around second-level blockers. Also, I’m not sure Connor Lew is worth a top-50 pick. I’m missing the drive. But he’s rock solid. He does almost everything right, and works with the rest of the line at an outstanding level as a true center.”
From anonymous to $8 million man, 49ers’ Jake Tonges cashes in after surprising season (paywall)
“The contract marks the latest successful chapter in Tonges’ underdog story after the Los Gatos High School alum was a walk-on at Cal who wasn’t selected in the 2022 NFL draft after his 47-catch college career. Tonges worked at Morgan Stanley while he was at Cal. And he was prepared to explore a post-college career in tech sales or finance after earning a bachelor’s degree in American studies and a graduate certificate in business administration.”
5 things to know about new 49ers OL Brett Toth
Toth didn’t exactly take it easy on the academic side of things while at West Point. Despite having his hands full with other activities, Toth decided to major in physics and nuclear engineering.
“I definitely made things a little difficult with that,” Toth said, per the Pensacola News Journal. “It is a hard major. A lot of late nights studying. The people I am around every day in that major are just studs in the classroom. They are geniuses and they helped me greatly.”
West Point-made Brett Toth joins the Eagles and is ready to serve: ‘Everything that I do represents the Army’ (paywall)
“He’s just a great, big kid with really good feet,” Monken said. “And one of the most intelligent players that I’ve ever coached.”
In fact, Toth called the play on a game-winning two-point conversion to beat San Diego State in the 2017 Armed Forces Bowl. After the Black Knights scored a touchdown with 18 seconds remaining to pull within one point, they decided to go for two to try to win it instead of attempting the extra point. Monken gathered his players together. Toth recommended they call a toss that had worked throughout the game instead of a zone run. The running back sprinted untouched into the end zone — around Toth’s edge — to take the lead.
“I just had a feeling to go out in open space, and you take as many variables out as possible,” said Toth, who also credited the blocking of the wide receiver on the play. “The rest is history.”
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