The Lions are going to spend some cash this month after all. And it’ll be on a familiar face.
Roughly 15 minutes after the 2021 free agency window opened, the Lions had their first (re)addition: Edge rusher Romeo Okwara agreed to a three-year deal worth up to $39 million with incentives, according a league source. That’s a substantial raise for the former undrafted rookie, who set a career high with 10 sacks last season.
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The move keeps Okwara with his younger brother and fellow Lions edge rusher Julian Okwara and gives new Detroit defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn a hard-working, consistent presence up front in his new-look defense. The Athletic’s Sheil Kapadia grades the move as a B-minus. Let’s break it down.
How he fits: It remains to be seen what the Lions work out of in 2021 and beyond, but the 6-foot-4, 274-pounder had his best overall year as a hand-in-the-ground edge rusher last season. Okwara wound up with 61 pressures and 42 quarterback hurries, per Pro Football Focus. The 61 pressures were tied with Joey Bosa for No. 5 among edge rushers last season. The 42 hurries also ranked fifth, one pressure shy of Bears star Khalil Mack. Okwara has not been as stout vs. the run in his career and while he did play a career-high 28 coverage snaps a year ago, he’s a pass-rushing defensive end.
2021 impact: Okwara and fellow edge defender Trey Flowers were Detroit’s most consistent front seven defenders in 2020 and could be again next season. Okwara just went from slightly above $3 million per year to a few digits north of $10 million per, so the Lions are definitely expecting his pass-rush efficiency to carry over from his contract year.
Will it? Good question. Okwara’s eight-sack 2018 season suggests his 2020 outburst was possible. He’s not an athletic marvel, but rather a very savvy technician. The Lions need more from him against the run this year and his impact as a pass rusher needs to show up — even if he draws more doubles in 2021.
“Romeo had 10 sacks, so he’s a pressure player,” Glenn said recently. “Every team in this league, every coach in this league, wants a pressure player. … We’re gonna have him rushing the quarterback. That’s what he does best.”
Draft impact: This is interesting. The Lions still need more speed, both up front and in the middle of the defense. The younger Julian Okwara is a promising edge prospect and a better athlete than Romeo. Flowers’ deal likely keeps him in Detroit for a bit. Is edge still as high a priority as it was before this? Probably not. Though the Lions still need better athletes up front.
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Okwara’s deal is only for three years and this is still very much a rebuild. We’ll see what the outs are on the contract, but the Lions will surely continue to survey all pass-rushing options as the draft nears. Now, though, this spot no longer serves as a pressing need before the second day of the draft.
Cap update: The Lions spent the weeks leading into free agency in slash mode to get themselves barely under the cap, cutting big numbers in Desmond Trufant, Jesse James and Justin Coleman (the Trufant move has not yet been announced). There will surely be other departures, but this is a sizable number for Okwara. We don’t yet know what his cap number for 2021 will be, but it’s likely to be toward the top of Detroit’s sheet. Not bringing Kenny Golladay back makes this move a bit easier, but there should be more restructure/cap moves ahead.
Outlook: Okwara’s return is a little surprising, though perhaps not shocking. He was arguably the most consistent player on the Lions a year ago, a great locker-room presence and a generally well-respected player. Culturally, he fits everything coach Dan Campbell and GM Brad Holmes want. But will he be able to carry over that production over time? Okwara’s clearly higher on the opposition’s priority scouting sheet these days. He’ll have more attention. He’s not an electric athlete. But he will set a great example for younger players, show up every day and give everything he has. The Lions are serious about building around team-first players and Okwara is one of those.
(Photo: Frederick Breedon / Getty Images)
