Edge defender Odafe Oweh was a godsend for the Los Angeles Chargers down the stretch, and his strong play could earn him a massive raise in the coming months. A first-round pick in the 2o21 NFL Draft, Oweh began the 2025 season with the Baltimore Ravens following a 10-sack 2024. However, the Ravens traded him to the Chargers following a slow start to the season.
The change of scenery proved to be beneficial, as Oweh caught fire down the stretch. During his 12 games with the team, the pass rusher recorded 7.5 sacks, 28 tackles, 8 tackles-for-loss, 13 quarterback hits, and a 75.5 PFF grade, the 26th-best mark in the league. Thanks in large part to this performance, Pro Football Focus believes Oweh is the seventh-best impending free agent in the league and will sign a four-year, $77 million contract.
“A midseason trade from the Baltimore Ravens to the Los Angeles Chargers sparked a career year for Odafe Oweh at an ideal time as he heads towards free agency,” PFF writes. “He recorded three sacks and two forced fumbles in the Chargers’ playoff loss to the New England Patriots and ranked 11th among edge defenders in PFF pass-rush win rate (16.5%) after arriving in Los Angeles.”
PFF Has Bold Prediction For Chargers Free Agent Odafe Oweh
$77 million is a lot of money, but that is the going rate for above-average pass rushers. If signed, this deal would put him between Josh Sweat and Jonathan Greenard in total contract value, two similar good-but-not-great players. The $15.5 million per year, meanwhile, would put him right between Dayo Odeyingbo and Harold Landry.
Quite frankly, there’s no reason the Los Angeles Chargers shouldn’t sign Odafe Oweh to this contract. It’s a fair value for a good player at a premium position, and Los Angeles has the money to hand out this type of deal. The Chargers have over $83.5 million in cap space, so they can afford to sign Oweh without impacting their ability to fix the offensive line and add another pass-catching playmaker.
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