It's a tough year to be a rookie in the NFL, not that it's ever been easy. No mini-camp. No OTA's. No on-field reps before jumping into the fire of training camp, and no preseason games afterward to see where you stack up.
It's a little easier when you've got a veteran teammate living next door. Even better if he plays your position. Better still if he happens to be your older brother.
As third-round pick Julian Okwara tries to get up to speed with the Lions, his best resource has been his older brother, next-door neighbor and fellow defensive end, Romeo Okwara.
"Just being able to go back home and look over the playbook with him, asking questions, especially when you’re in the building with the older guys all day and then you go home and you’re by yourself. With my brother right next door, I'm able to go over, pop into his room and ask questions real quick and then go back to my place," Okwara said Thursday after Detroit's third padded practice of training camp.
When Okwara was drafted by the Lions, he said he intended to move in with Romeo. He liked the idea of living rent-free for a year. Who wouldn't? Ultimately he decided to get his own place -- rent's not so bad with a $4.9 million contract -- but the brothers are basically roommates.
"I like my own space, but he’s definitely close enough to be a great resource for me in terms of football and keeping the right mental head space," Okwara said. "Especially in a long season, it’s going to be important that we stay close to each other. It’s definitely going to help in the long run, so I’m looking forward to that and spending more time with him. It's just nice having family next door."
Okwara said they haven't spent this much time together since Romeo was in high school. That would have been nearly 10 years ago, when Julian was about 12 years old. Then Romeo went off to Notre Dame, and Julian followed him all the way to Detroit.
It took a couple years for Romeo to find his groove in the NFL. The Lions are hoping Julian can bolster their pass rush as a rookie. He had 13 sacks and 19.5 tackles for loss over his final two seasons at Notre Dame, the latter of which was cut short by a serious leg injury. Before he underwent surgery in November, some pundits thought he was a potential first-round pick.
But that's in the past. Okwara is healthy now and looking forward.
"I feel 100 percent healthy," he said. "Been doing everything (at practice). Just a matter of getting back to football and the fundamentals and getting back to what I do."