Dallas Cowboys 7-Round Mock Draft: Trade Downs and Double Ups

Osa Odighizuwa, DT, UCLA Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-USA TODAY Sports

Dallas Cowboys 4th Round, Pick 138

Osa Odighizuwa, DT, UCLA

Interior defensive line is once again the position of choice at this particular pick. The redshirt-senior interior defensive lineman from UCLA has been an increasingly popular name after a rock-solid Senior Bowl experience. His play strength, motor, and aggression are reminiscent of someone who plays bigger than his 6-foot-1.5, 282-pound frame.

Perhaps someone like Grady Jarrett? For comparison:

Jarrett:

Height: 6006

Weight: 304 

Arm Length: 32.375

Vertical Jump: 31″

Broad Jump: 112″

Odighizuwa:

Height: 6015

Weight: 282

Arm Length: 34″

Vertical Jump: 31.5

Broad Jump: 120

This interior defensive tackle class doesn’t have a lot of top-end talent, but there are prospects with good athletic ability. Development is crucial as with any position, but with someone like Odighizuwa who displays good technique in run support and a good motor, developing a more varied pass rush plan makes him a starting interior defensive lineman in this league.

The redshirt-senior displays good lower body and core strength; these along with his good pad level allow him to leverage gaps as a 3 and 5 technique. On the inside, he can get blown away by double teams because he doesn’t have the upper body strength to control offensive linemen on combo blocks but his relentless motor can help him stay onto blockers just a second longer in order to make a play on ball carriers.

As a pass rusher, he displays the ability to turn speed to power in a bull rush with his good upfield burst and motor. He displays solid use of hands attacking the breastplate of opposing offensive linemen. As it currently stands, he would be a better option to rush from the inside as he doesn’t display the necessary bend to speed rush from the edge. He doesn’t display much of a counter or power pass rush plan, something he will have to work on at the next level.

The defensive coordinator has helped defensive linemen develop before. Odighizuwa seems like an incredibly coachable defensive player; of all the defensive linemen potentially mocked to the Cowboys, he could make the most sense based on athletic ability and character. He’s the “right kind of guy” if you will.