There aren’t many in the NFL who get to say they’ve played with their brother for years.
Lions defensive end Romeo Okwara had the opportunity to play elsewhere as a free agent. But Detroit selected his brother, Julian, in the third round of the 2020 draft. And that was part of the reason he re-signed with the Lions on a three-year, $39 million deal.
“I mean at the end of the day for me it was a pretty simple decision,” Okwara said Wednesday, via Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press. “Being able to play with my brother and, I guess, continue that, what we wanted, our vision we have and what we want to get done in the city of Detroit, that was very important to me. So it was kind of a no-brainer for me and was able to get something done pretty quickly.”
Okwara began his career with the Giants before the Lions picked him up off waivers at the start of the 2018 season. Since then, he’s recorded 19.0 sacks, including 10.0 in 2020.
He called Dan Campbell “high energy [and] a little unorthodox,” but Okwara added he thinks he’ll be a great fit under the new head coach and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn.
But being able to play with his brother was clearly an essential factor to keep Okwara in Detroit.
“I think our contracts are going to finish at the same time now,” Okwara said. “That was definitely something I wanted to get done and just being able to spend the time helping him and I guess develop this defense together.”