Tag: Romeo Okwara

Lions 2021 key free agents: Who should stay and who should go

An early look at some of the more important Lions scheduled to be free agents after the 2020 season

The Detroit Lions sit at 3-5 at the halfway point of the 2020 NFL season, looking at a second half that will reveal a lot about the future of the team. That includes the fates of several prominent Lions who will be free agents after the season.

It’s hard to predict if there will be a new GM and coaching regime, of course, and who that might be. But talent is talent, and the Lions have a lot of it headed to free agency, including the top four wide receivers on the depth chart.

Here’s an early look at some of the more important Lions scheduled to be free agents after the 2020 season and if the team should bring them back in 2021 and beyond.

Watch: Brayden Coombs’ special teams block two punts against Vikings

Entering Week 8, the Lions hadn’t blocked a punt since 2007. Over the last two games, Brayden Coombs’ special teams unit has blocked three.

Entering Week 8, the Lions hadn’t blocked a punt since 2007. Over the last two games, Brayden Coombs’ special teams unit has blocked three.

Early in the season, the hype surrounding Coombs centered around what he has been able to accomplish with Jack Fox, taking an undrafted free agent who was in a punter competition for a roster spot, and turning him into the best punter in the NFL in average yards per punt, net yards per punt, hang time, among other categories — all categories he still leads.

But, over the last two weeks, when he has called for a punt block, the Lions have been getting to the ball. And the part that really drives home that this isn’t just luck, is the fact that each block has come from a player lining up at a different spot.

In Week 8, Miles Killebrew was the player who got the Lions first block in nearly 13 years, but he was assisted by pressures by Jahlani Tavai and Jamie Collins. Tavai blew his guy off the ball and pushed him back into Killebrew’s lane, essentially occupying the assigned blocker, while Collins threatened the edge and forced the blocker wide

“You never know when it’s going to be you, whether the rush is designed for you specifically or not,” Coombs said to the Lions media after Killebrew’s block. “Like we talk about pressure burst pipes. As we’re creating pressure for the opponent, it might be designed to hit on one side of the formation, but the way that it breaks down, it might be somebody totally unexpected that comes free. So that’s why it’s really important that all 11 guys are out there doing their jobs, got the pedal to the metal.”

This week, Austin Bryant, who activated from the PUP list less than 24 hours before the game, lined up on the edge. When the edge blocker went low to cut block him, Bryant’s length and athleticism allowed him to power through the glancing block attempt, keep his feet, then use his length to get to the ball. Check out the full clip below:

Three possessions later, the Lions set a franchise record when Romeo Okwara got his hand on another punt.

Okwara lines up over the A-gap and his first step is too quick for the long snapper, who immediately grabs Okwara by the waist as he bursts by him. Okwara powers through the holding attempt and uses every bit of his length to deflect the ball. Check out the clip below (the replay gives a better perspective of how Okwara accomplished this):

Two games, three blocked punts, by three different players, all lining up at different spots. As Coombs said, if you get all 11 players to do their jobs then eventually the pipe is going to burst somewhere.

It’s fair to say, Coombs has his guys properly motivated, extremely prepared, and working hard for him on every snap. And it’s paying off.

Notre Dame in the NFL: Huge performances in big AFC game, Tate throws a pass and more

Plenty of former Notre Dame stars had big games for Pittsburgh (Claypool & Tuitt), Detroit (Okwara) and the Chargers (Tillery & Rochell).

Former Notre Dame stars had quite a week 8 in the NFL, highlighted by four former Irish alums making big plays in the huge AFC matchup between Pittsburgh and Baltimore. The Steelers left Baltimore undefeated, but that wasn’t due to the efforts from Miles Boykin. Find out which other former Notre Dame stars had big games this past week in the NFL.

5 Lions the Colts must game plan for in Week 8

Key Lions to watch out for on Sunday.

The Indianapolis Colts (4-2) come off their bye week sitting one game out of first place in the AFC South. With a week off coming at a perfect time, the Colts will try to get healthy and remain healthy with a tough stretch of the season coming up.

This Sunday against the Detroit Lions (3-3) is not a game that should be looked over. The Lions have a lot of playmakers and proved last week that they are capable of coming back late in a game.

Game-planning for the quarterback is always a given each week, but who are some of the other players that the Colts have to keep their eye on?

Here are five Lions the Colts must game plan for in Week 8:

Lions passing offense, defensive line earn high marks from PFF in Week 7 win

Stafford and Golladay tied for the top mark on the team

The offensive skill position players and the defensive line shone bright in the Detroit Lions’ last-second win over the Atlanta Falcons in Week 7. The top Pro Football Focus grades on each side of the ball are clearly clustered around those two groups.

On offense, the pitch-and-catch package of QB Matthew Stafford, WR Kenny Golladay, WR Marvin Jones and TE T.J. Hockenson filled four of the top five grades for players who saw at least 15 reps in the game. Stafford and Golladay tied with a 90.3 rating, good enough to qualify for elite level play in Week 7. Hockenson was next at 74.2, buoyed by his game-winning TD reception on the final play. Center Frank Ragnow followed with a 72.8 and Jones earned a 69.6 for his effort.

Defenisvely, the top four scores belonged to the linemen:

  • Romeo Okwara, 89.6
  • Da’Shawn Hand, 82.2
  • Danny Shelton, 77.4
  • Trey Flowers, 75.7

Safety Tracy Walker continued his upsurge in play with a 70.6 score to round out the top five.

At the other end of the spectrum, the offensive guards had a rough day in the grading process. Halapoulivaati Vaitai had the lowest on offense at 42.3 and Jonah Jackson was next at 51.1. That’s the starting guard tandem and the Lions did not rotate guards in this game.

Cornerbacks Darryl Roberts (36.7) and Amani Oruwariye (44.4) had the bottom grades on defense. Oruwariye’s low score is primarily a function of missing three tackles, while Roberts allowed nine completions on nine targets thrown his way.

 

 

Studs and Duds Week 6: Swift leads the charge to victory

Identifying the studs and duds from the Detroit Lions Week 6 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Detroit Lions came off a bye week looking to improve from their 1-3 record, and they did just that. The team went down to Jacksonville and pulled off a 34-16 win to secure their second victory of the season.

While a win over the Jaguars isn’t the most impressive feat in the NFL, the Lions did look like they resolved some of the issues that had been ailing them over the first four games.

Some players really made impacts in this matchup, here are the studs and duds for Week 6:

Stud: D’Andre Swift

Before this game, Swift had 10 carries for 42 yards and a touchdown. Yesterday, he then went on to notch his first 100-yard game, with 116 yards on 14 carries and two touchdowns.

The rookie’s career day helped propel the Lions to their second win of the season. Though he has been used primarily as a receiving option, he proved he can be an all-around weapon in Detroit.

Dud: Marvin Jones

Jones, who was once the consistent second receiver on the team behind Kenny Golladay, was held to a measly eight yards on Sunday. In a season where the veteran receiver has stayed healthy, it is disappointing that he hasn’t been able to produce for the offense.

Stud: Duron Harmon

This may be a hot take, but Harmon has been the best non-rookie addition to this team this season. He currently leads the defense in interceptions with two, and has the second-most pass breakups with four.

The safety position has been a concerning one in Detroit for quite some time, but Harmon really looks like he could be an integral part of the defense, potentially for years to come.

Stud: Jack Fox

The Lions currently have the best punter in the league, and luckily, didn’t have to use him too much in Jacksonville. His two punts on Sunday were the least amount of times he’s punted in a game in his career, and he averaged 45 yards per punt.

Dud: Jeff Okudah

Yes, the rookie cornerback did lead the team in tackles yesterday, but it’s easier to set yourself up to make a tackle when you’re allowing big plays from opposing receivers. Okudah had some rough angles that lead to some blown tackles.

Stud: The run defense

The Lions held the Jaguars to a total of 44 rushing yards, with the longest run being just nine yards by quarterback Gardner Minshew. Detroit had struggled against running backs throughout their first four games, and it’s clear they made some much-needed adjustments over the bye week.

Stud: Romeo Okwara

The older of the two Okwara brothers has played relatively well on defense. Okwara finished the game with two quarterback hits, a tackle for loss, and a fumble recovery. Though he wasn’t able to record a sack in this game, he did put the pressure on both Minshew and the Jaguars’ offensive line.

Lions in good position to make waiver claims this weekend

Detroit sits third in the waiver wire order

Hundreds of players are about to hit the NFL’s waiver wire. With the league’s 4 p.m. ET deadline on Saturday for rosters to be cut down to 53, every team is going to dump over 20 players, the Detroit Lions included.

Those players let go are subject to the waiver claim process, and that’s where Detroit’s poor 2019 finish turns into an asset for GM Bob Quinn and the Lions. Detroit holds the No. 3 spot on the waiver claim order, which leaves the team in a strong position to pick up players discarded from other teams at the roster deadline.

The waiver order is the same as the raw 2020 NFL Draft order. The Cincinnati Bengals are first, followed by the Washington Football Team and then the Lions. The draft order was altered by some traded picks, but the waiver claim order is based on the pre-trade draft positions.

The top 10 in the waiver order:

Cincinnati Bengals
Washington Football Team
Detroit Lions
New York Giants
Miami Dolphins
Los Angeles Chargers
Carolina Panthers
Arizona Cardinals
Jacksonville Jaguars
Cleveland Browns

That order remains in place until the conclusion of Week 3, when it’s readjusted based on records to that point.

If the Lions make a claim on a player, he will become theirs unless Cincinnati or Washington also claimed the same player. The order is the same for every player; if the Lions claim someone, it doesn’t reset the order for another player.

The team has been active and productive on the roster cutdown waiver wire in recent years under Quinn. Detroit landed starting DE Romeo Okwara and core special teams player Dee Virgin in the waiver claim process.

[lawrence-related id=49565]

Lions activate Romeo Okwara, Jalen Elliott, waive Jeremiah Dinson

The Detroit Lions announced they have activated Romeo Okwara from NFI, Jalen Elliott from reserve/COVID-19, and waived Jeremiah Dinson.

The Detroit Lions announced they have activated defensive end Romeo Okwara from the non-football injury list (NFI), undrafted safety Jalen Elliott from reserve/COVID-19 list, and waived undrafted rookie safety Jeremiah Dinson.

Okwara returning from the NFI list couldn’t come at a better time as the Lions will begin padded practices on Monday and only had two EDGE rushers healthy on the roster: Trey Flowers and Julian Okwara. Second year EDGE Austin Bryant is still on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list but there have been no updates on his status at this time.

Elliott was originally flagged on the opening day of COVID-19 testing and remained out of the facility until today. According to the NFL/NFLPA agreement, it means has been symptom-free for 72 hours and received clearance from the team’s head physician.

The Lions have now returned every player on their reserve/COVID list and now have strung together 12 straight days of tests, without having to place any additional players on the list.

[lawrence-related id=48466]

Dinson is the first undrafted free agent rookie to be released from the Lions roster this season, despite a series of roster moves last weekend. It’s a tough environment to succeed in, with no preseason games to prove themselves, and for a player who likely needed to show his value on special teams.

Lions claim DT Daylon Mack off waivers in series of Sunday roster moves

Mack was a 5th-round pick by the Ravens in 2019

The Detroit Lions were busy working on the first day of August. The team announced on Sunday evening a series of roster moves, including the addition of defensive tackle Daylon Mack off waivers.

Mack was claimed off waivers from Baltimore, where he was a fifth-round pick by the Ravens in the 2019 NFL Draft. He played only nine special teams snaps in one game as a rookie.

In addition to the Mack acquisition, the Lions made a couple of internal status updates.

Austin Bryant was placed on the active/PUP list. The second-year EDGE missed most of his rookie campaign with a torn pectoral muscle.

Defensive end Romeo Okwara is now on the active/non-football injury list.

Both Okwara and Bryant remain free to be activated at any point before the start of the season and do not count against the Lions’ roster cap.

The team also officially announced the signing of draft pick Jashon Cornell.

Romeo Okwara speaks out against DeSean Jackson’s anti-Semitic comments

Jackson made offensive social media posts last week and NFL players have been slow to call him out

Lions defensive end Romeo Okwara has been one of the first NFL players to actively speak out and condemn the recent anti-Semitic comments from Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver, DeSean Jackson.

Jackson attributed a quote to Adolf Hitler and praised Nation of Islam founder Louis Farrakhan, who has espoused anti-Semitic viewpoints and teachings. Jackson has since deleted the offensive social media postings and issued an apology.

Not many NFL players have spoken out against Jackson’s oppressive, racially inflammatory actions. Okwara is one of the first, joining Pittsburgh’s Zach Banner and Cam Heyward and New England’s Julian Edelman, one of the league’s few Jewish players.

Okwara wrote this as the caption for the Instagram post,

Anti-Semitic comments towards the Jewish community are and will always be completely unacceptable. As a fellow member of the NFL, I am incredibly embarrassed for the huge mistake DeSean Jackson made. We must all continue to educate ourselves and fight against ignorance and hatred of all types. As we fight for equality in the black community, we can’t step on the necks of another. It is important to speak up in times like these and I want to thank @zbnfl for his leadership on this very important matter. There is no place for hate in this world!