Cowboys dragging feet on Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb could cost them key defender

The pressure is on the Dallas Cowboys this upcoming season. After failing to make it past the Wild Card Round after clinching the No. 2 seed, the Cowboys are, for the most part, running it back with the same roster. The only new faces, besides their new rookie class, are linebacker Eric Kendricks, and former running back Ezekiel Elliott.

It's well known that three of the Cowboys' most prominent players are due for new contracts. Quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb are set to hit free agency at the end of the 2024 season. Meanwhile, edge rusher Micah Parsons is under contract through the 2025 season. When it comes to Prescott and Lamb, the longer the Cowboys wait to negotiate and finalize new contracts, the more expensive they'll become. If that is the case, the Cowboys could lose out on one of their best contributors on defense.

CBS Sports' Chris Trapasso listed five players set to hit free agency next year that could be primed for breakout seasons. One of the impending free agents that Trapasso lists is Cowboys defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa.

"This is the season we start to recognize Odighizuwa too as one of the true stars on Dallas' vaunted defense. The former third-round pick has played right around 600 snaps in each of his first three seasons and set a career high in pressures last season with 47 on 356 pass-rush attempts," writes Trapasso.

"At 6-foot-2 and 280 pounds with a 84-inch wingspan, he routinely eats running backs for lunch between the tackles and has showcased the same athletic gifts that made him a star at UCLA. With plenty of attention paid to Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence, inside, Odighizuwa will see ample one-on-one scenarios. If he eclipses 50 pressures in 2024, which is totally doable for him, money will come flooding in."

Cowboys' lack of Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb contract progress could cost them Osa Odighizuwa

Odighizuwa was selected in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft out of UCLA. Being an interior defensive lineman alongside Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence should get you plenty of attention, as Trapasso points out. Odighizuwa has thrived in doing so, putting pressure of his own on the opposing quarterback.

Through 17 games last season, Odighizuwa recorded 31 tackles (11 assisted), 31 quarterback hurries, 26 defensive stops, nine quarterback hits, and three sacks in 635 total snaps, per Pro Football Focus ($).

Defensive tackles have been paid quite well, as evidenced by Chris Jones, Jeffery Simmons, Quinnen Williams, Derrick Brown, Justin Madubuike, and Christian Wilkins all earning well over $90 million contracts.

Speaking of contracts, the Cowboys are watching the quarterback and wide receiver markets get more and more expensive.

When it comes to quarterbacks, Jared Goff of the Detroit Lions recently received a four-year, $212 million extension. That $53 million per year average is now the second-most among quarterbacks, only behind Joe Burrow of the Cincinnati Bengals ($55 million). Prescott is coming off a great season in which he finished behind Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson for the NFL MVP award this past season.

While Prescott recently said he doesn't "play for money," he's undoubtedly going to rank near the top among fellow quarterbacks. It's a matter of if the Cowboys are the ones to pay him.

As for Lamb, he has been holding out of Cowboys optional team activities (OTAs). The price for wide receivers is increasing as well, with A.J. Brown of the Philadelphia Eagles and Amon-Ra St. Brown of the Lions setting the market. Brown is earning $32 million per year on his three-year, $96 million deal with the Eagles, while Brown is making a little over $30 million per year on his four-year, $120 million contract. Not to mention, Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings is due for a new contract, and will reset the market. If Jefferson and the Vikings are able to strike a deal before Lamb and the Cowboys, it could make negotiations difficult for the NFC East team.

The more time the Cowboys take to negotiate extensions with Prescott and Lamb, the more at risk they are to lose out on players like Odighizuwa next year.