Julian Okwara has his priorities in line.
The moment after he hung up the call that officially made him an NFL player, he delivered the news of his destination to his family in an enterprising way. Okwara stared at his brother, Romeo Okwara, seated on an adjacent couch in the family’s living room and point-blank told him with a grin, “We’re about to be roommates, bro.”
That meant, of course, the brothers were going to be teammates for the first time in their lives. Okwara was the No. 67 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, taken by his brother’s employer, the Detroit Lions. Romeo, whose final season at Notre Dame in 2015 was the year before Julian’s first in South Bend, has played for the Lions since 2018. They will share defensive line position group meetings.
But first, they will share a home. Even though there was a one-in-32 chance the Lions picked him, Julian negotiated the deal ahead of time.
“He’s going to have to pay the rent and I’m not splitting it,” Julian said at the NFL Combine in February. “He’s going to take care of it. I’m the younger brother, and that’s what older brothers do. They take care of their younger brother.”
On draft night, he confirmed it’s still the plan.
“He’s got a nice couch upstairs,” Julian said. “I’m crashing on that my rookie year. Save some money. It’s 100 percent still happening.”
Romeo, whose contract will pay him $2.75 million in 2020, is willing and capable. Julian’s first job out of college set him up well, too. He will earn $4.9 million over the course of his four-year rookie contract, per Spotrac.com. His signing bonus is projected to be $1.14 million.
Romeo had 1.5 sacks in 14 games in 2019. His career high of 7.5 came in 2018.
Until they are cleared to report back for offseason team activities in Detroit and settle into their pad, the brothers will be together in the family’s home in Charlotte, N.C. It is a natural opportunity for scheme tutelage from Romeo and improvised workouts with each other.
“Maybe he gets a helping hand with the playbook,” Lions general manager Bob Quinn told reporters on a conference call. “He’s a smart kid anyways. He knows football. But it’s obviously helpful to have someone who’s been in the system for a couple years at your disposal and wants his brother to do well.”
The draft pick was not, though, about creating a fun family story. The Lions were No. 28 in the NFL in sacks in 2019. They ranked 25th or worse in points per game, yards per game, yards per play and sacks. They were 24th in takeaways force and were one of two teams to allow more than 400 yards per game and ranked last in passing defense. Above all, the Lions chose Julian because they think he can help remedy that — and soon.
“Let’s talk about his skill set first,” Quinn said. “That’s why we picked him. He just happens to be Romeo’s brother.”
What Julian will bring is speed and athleticism off the edge. He had an elite 90.4 pass-rush grade in 2019, per Pro Football Focus. His pressure rate of 19.1 percent since 2018 led all Football Bowl Subdivision players. He ended his Notre Dame career with 15.5 sacks and 24.5 tackles for loss. PFF credited him with 124 quarterback pressures in 751 career pass-rush snaps.
“They’re getting a relentless pass rusher, great defensive end and someone who wreaks havoc in the backfield,” Julian said on a conference call.
Julian had five sacks as a senior before a broken fibula suffered Nov. 9 against Duke ended his season. He did not recover in time to participate in workouts at the NFL Combine, aside from bench press, where he completed 27 reps at 225 pounds. He said he ran a 4.53 40-yard dash in the spring of his junior year and wanted to top that. At a private, recorded pro day in lieu of Notre Dame’s canceled one, he ran a hand-timed 4.6. It would have tied for the best time among all defensive linemen at the combine.
The injury was a major reason some first-round and top-40 discussion around Julian quieted and made him more of a day-two pick. The Lions snatched him right in the middle of that range with no concerns
“We feel great about the recovery,” Quinn said.
Added Julian: “I’m good to go.”
The selection received mostly positive reviews from draft analysts, including an “A-” grade from CBS Sports’ Chris Trapasso.
“Okwara is a solid pass rusher that needs to develop his pass-rush arsenal,” Trapasso wrote. “It is a bit of a surprise he lasted until the third round.”
The Lions — and Romeo — are happy he did.
There is one more hurdle in their living arrangement. Each brother has a dog, and per Julian, they’ll need some time to adjust to adding another four-legged friend in the house.
“They fought the last time they were with each other.”
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