The Detroit Lions have been searching for a complementary piece for their defensive front, and may have found a major one in the form of Julian Okwara.
Okwara has come alive on the field in the last two weeks with 2 sacks to his credit, and his latest work against the Los Angeles Rams was amongst his best. Okwara stepped up on the day, registering 2 tackles, a sack and a pass breakup in the game to make a big statement.
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In a key moment of the game in the third quarter, Okwara burst through the Rams line and managed to put the heat on Matthew Stafford. Okwara dropped Stafford on the play and ended up getting credit for the sack. Here’s a look at the play:
Big play in a close game! @julian_okwara 🇳🇬 with a sack as the @Lions search for that first win of the season!
Later, on a pass breakup, Okwara drifted backward in coverage and was in the right place at the right time to break up a critical pass on fourth down. Against the run, Okwara was all over the place most of the afternoon as well, and was once again rated as a top Pro Football Focus player with a 71.8 grade.
Okwara’s emergence has been huge for the Lions considering they have needed a bigger presence up front with injuries taking over. Seeing a young player emerge is huge for the defense, especially at a position of such intense need like linebacker and edge. The hope is Okwara can use this performance as a major boost moving forward for his career.
Romeo Okwara Cheers Brother During Game
The Lions have a pair of brothers battling on the field that are genuinely happy for each other’s success. That much was proven true in Week 7 when Romeo Okwara was tweeting about what his brother was doing on the field. Right after the sack, Okwara took to Twitter to cheer the moment and provide a commentary about what was happening on the game.
Love to see it!!!
Lost for the season with an Achilles injury, Okwara has been sidelined, but it’s clear he is very happy to see his brother battling and picking up the slack for the family on the field. Coming into the season, it was a stated goal for the brothers to both collect 10 sacks together. While that might not happen now thanks to injury, it’s clear that the arrow is firmly pointed upward for this in the future.
Julian Okwara’s Stats and Highlights
Coming into the 2021 season, it was clear that Julian Okwara was going to be primed for a big effort on the field. He had missed most of his rookie 2020 season with injury, so it was clear coming in that Okwara was in position to do some damage for the Lions if he could stay healthy. Injuries up front to other players ended up helping Okwara see more of the field, as did the effort he put in as it relates to honing his craft. So far this season, Okwara has put up 7 tackles, 2 sacks and 1 pass defended on the season. In his NFL career, he has 13 tackles, 2 sacks and 4 quarterback hits, with the bulk of that work playing out in 2021.
Collegiately, Okwara always showed these kind of attributes. At Notre Dame, he put up 79 total tackles and 15.5 sacks in his career to go with 2 interceptions and 4 forced fumbles. Here was some of his work in college:
After feeling like a draft steal, it’s good to see Okwara coming into his own in 2021 and making a major difference on the field.
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Julian Okwara Shows Emergence With Huge Game vs. Rams