San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa wasted little time embracing his new role as the Dallas Cowboys’ rival, looking forward to playing against his former team.

The Cowboys will play the 49ers in Week 10 of the 2026 regular season on November 15. Odighizuwa expressed that, though the scenarios have flipped, he is looking forward to the matchup with the Cowboys during his recent appearance on the Richard Sherman Podcast.

“Speaking to the [49ers-Cowboys] rivalry, this is a game that for a long time I was, this is the game that I mean, it’s like you’ve got a picture on a dartboard and you’re throwing knives at it,” Odighizuwa told Sherman. “Now I just take down that picture, and I put up the other one, and I’m on the other side of it, but the energy is exactly the same.” 

The 49ers and the Cowboys have a long-standing rivalry that dates back to their playoff clashes in the 1980s, as the 49ers have a 21-19-1 record against the Cowboys, including the playoffs.

Dallas traded him in March for a 2026 third-round pick. He was previously secured as a third-round pick (No. 75 overall) by the Cowboys in the 2021 NFL Draft.

He has recorded a total of 216 tackles (115 solo), 34 tackles for loss, 17 sacks, and 81 QB hits across 84 games with the Cowboys.

And that production landed Odighizuwa as one of the seven players with 23 or more QB hits in each of the last two years, per Josh Dubow of the Associated Press. 

After watching the 49ers win four straight against Dallas during his tenure there, Odighizuwa now finds himself on the winning side of that streak.

Odighizuwa Ready to Compete for Super Bowl With 49ers 

Though the trade by the Cowboys initially hurt him, he believes that it did not diminish his value as a player. He expressed excitement about playing against the Cowboys, and also shared his goal of landing a Super Bowl win with the 49ers.

“I definitely want to make a deep playoff run and get to the dance,” Odighizuwa said during the Richard Sherman Podcast. “I want to get that ring for sure. Being on a team that has been to the Super Bowl in two of the last six seasons is very hopeful.”

He believes he has barely scratched the surface of the player that he is, and joining the 49ers can unlock his potential, landing him in playoff wins.

The 49ers had a significant roster gap at the pass rusher, highlighted by their league-low record of 20 sacks in the 2025 season. The 49ers view him as a vital piece for Raheem Morris' versatile defense

Read more on the Dallas Cowboys Community

Written by

Archana Ramakrishnan

Edited by

Rudra Dubey