Romeo Okwara

Romeo Okwara

Okwara with the New York Giants in 2016
No. 78, 95
Position:	Defensive end
Personal information
Born:	(1995-06-17) June 17, 1995 (age 29) Lagos, Nigeria[1]
Height:	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:	255 lb (116 kg)
Career information
High school:	Ardrey Kell (Charlotte, North Carolina)
College:	Notre Dame (2012–2015)
Undrafted:	2016
Career history
New York Giants (2016–2017) Detroit Lions (2018–2023)
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles: 162 Sacks: 25.0 Forced fumbles: 6 Fumble recoveries: 1 Pass deflections: 6 Stats at Pro Football Reference

Romeo Chidozie Okwara (born June 17, 1995) is a Nigerian-born former American football defensive end. He played college football at Notre Dame. Okwara signed with the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent in 2016, and played six seasons with the Detroit Lions.

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables

Height	Weight	Arm length	Hand span	40-yard dash	10-yard split	20-yard split	20-yard shuttle	Three-cone drill	Vertical jump	Broad jump	Bench press
6 ft 4+5⁄8 in (1.95 m)	265 lb (120 kg)	34+1⁄8 in (0.87 m)	10+1⁄8 in (0.26 m)	4.90 s	1.74 s	2.89 s	4.53 s	7.38 s	33.0 in (0.84 m)	10 ft 0 in (3.05 m)	23 reps
All values from NFL Combine[2][3]

New York Giants

Okwara signed with the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent on May 6, 2016.^[4] Okwara made his first start replacing Jason Pierre-Paul in a 10–7 victory over the Dallas Cowboys on December 11, 2016.^[5]

On October 17, 2017, Okwara was placed on injured reserve with a knee sprain.^[6] He was activated off injured reserve to the active roster on December 19, 2017.^[7]

On September 4, 2018, Okwara was waived by the Giants.^[8]

Detroit Lions

On September 5, 2018, Okwara was claimed off waivers by the Detroit Lions.^[9] On October 7, 2018, against the Green Bay Packers, Okwara strip sacked quarterback Aaron Rodgers for a fumble recovery.^[10] He played in 15 games with 15 starts, finishing with 39 combined tackles, a team-leading 7.5 sacks, and a forced fumble.

On March 1, 2019, Okwara signed a two-year contract extension with the Lions.^[11]

Okwara was placed on the active/non-football injury list at the start of training camp on August 2, 2020.^[12] He was activated on August 14, 2020.^[13]

In Week 7 of the 2020 season against the Atlanta Falcons, Okwara recorded two sacks on Matt Ryan, including a strip sack which was recovered by the Lions, during the 23–22 win.^[14] In Week 15 against the Tennessee Titans, Okwara recorded a sack on Ryan Tannehill in the endzone for a safety during the 46–25 loss.^[15] Okwara had ten sacks for the 2020 season, while the rest of the Lions team only totaled 14.^[16] In Week 17 against the Minnesota Vikings, Okwara recorded his tenth sack of the season on Kirk Cousins during the 37–35 loss. During the 2020 season, Okwara recorded the same amount of sacks as he did during the rest of his career.^[17]

On March 17, 2021, Okwara signed a three-year, $39 million contract extension with the Lions.^[18][19]

On October 5, 2021, Okwara was placed on injured reserve after tearing his Achilles in Week 4.^[20]

On August 23, 2022, Okwara was placed on the reserve/physically unable to perform list to start the season.^[21] He was activated on December 3.^[22]

After his contract was done with the Lions, Okwara announced he was retiring from the NFL at the age of 28 on March 19, 2024. He played the last four seasons of his career with his younger brother Julian Okwara.^[23]

Personal life

Okwara's younger brother Julian Okwara, who also played college football at Notre Dame, also played for the Detroit Lions. He was born in Nigeria and moved to the United States at the age of 10.^[24]

References

1. Williams, Lauren (September 21, 2019). "Lions' Romeo Okwara on the rice that fed his childhood". mlive.com. mLive. Retrieved September 27, 2019.
2. "Romeo Okwara Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
3. "2016 NFL Draft Scout Romeo Okwara College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
4. Eisen, Michael (May 6, 2016). "Giants sign four draft picks & 14 undrafted free agents". Giants.com. Archived from the original on August 3, 2017. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
5. "Undrafted free agent Romeo Okwara making Giant impression in preseason". NJ.com. August 30, 2016.
6. Eisen, Michael (October 17, 2017). "Giants place DE Romeo Okwara on IR, claim LB Nigel Harris off waivers". Giants.com. Archived from the original on March 25, 2018.
7. Eisen, Michael (December 19, 2017). "Giants activate DE Romeo Okwara". Giants.com. Archived from the original on March 16, 2018.
8. Eisen, Michael (September 4, 2018). "Giants sign DT John Jenkins, waive DE Romeo Okwara". Giants.com.
9. "Lions awarded DE Romeo Okwara via waivers from New York Giants". DetroitLions.com. September 5, 2018.
10. "Romeo Okwara strips Aaron Rodgers for fumble". 247Sports.com. October 7, 2018.
11. Gordon, Grant (March 1, 2019). "Lions, DE Romeo Okwara agree on 2-year contract". NFL.com.
12. "Lions announce roster moves". DetroitLions.com. August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
13. "Lions announce roster moves". DetroitLions.com. August 14, 2020. Archived from the original on December 3, 2022. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
14. "Detroit Lions at Atlanta Falcons - October 25th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
15. "Detroit Lions at Tennessee Titans - December 20th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
16. Whitaker, Michael (January 3, 2021). "With double digit sacks, Romeo Okwara has set himself up for big pay day". detroitsportsnation.com. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
17. "Minnesota Vikings at Detroit Lions - January 3rd, 2021". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
18. Patra, Kevin. "Romeo Okwara returning to Lions on three-year, $39M deal". NFL.com. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
19. "Lions sign DE Romeo Okwara to contract extension". DetroitLions.com. March 17, 2021. Retrieved March 21, 2021.
20. Williams, Charean (October 5, 2021). "Lions place Romeo Okwara on injured reserve". Pro Football Talk. NBC Sports.
21. "Lions place 3 players on Reserve/PUP, 1 on Reserve/NFI". DetroitLions.com. August 23, 2022.
22. @Lions (December 3, 2022). "#Lions announce roster moves: Activated Romeo Okwara from Reserve/PUP and Jameson Williams from Reserve/NFI, Placed Julian Okwara on Reserve/Injured, Elevated Ross Pierschbacher from the Practice Squad to the Active/Inactive List" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
23. "Detroit Lions DE Romeo Okwara retires after eight seasons". ESPN.com. March 19, 2024.
24. "Romeo Okwara's Talents Reach Far Beyond the Playing Field". September 21, 2015.

External links

• New York Giants bio
• Notre Dame Fighting Irish bio