As his playing time ticks up, so does Julian Okwara's impact on the Lions' defense. He picked up his first career sack in Week 6, followed by his second in Week 7, followed by another tackle for loss in Week 8. And in Week 10, coming off Detroit's bye, the second-year outside linebacker snared his first NFL interception.
He just wishes he had taken it to the house.
"I slipped right before it happened, and then I saw open field. Tried to make a play and didn't want to lose the ball, so I fell. That's my reasoning to why I didn't get to the end zone," Okwara said Thursday. "Everybody's been giving me a little bit of this and that for not scoring. It was definitely a game-changing play I should have finished."
Maybe he'll get another chance Sunday in Cleveland. Okwara has played at least 40 percent of the defensive snaps in his last four games after playing 30 percent or fewer in his first four of the season. He's notched two sacks, three QB hits, three tackles for loss and nine solo tackles over that span. The 37 snaps he played last Sunday in Pittsburgh were a career high.
With fellow OLB Trey Flowers having missed practice this week due to a knee injury, Okwara is in line for even more work against the Browns. Is he ready?
"Oh, yeah," he said. "I been ready. I'm begging for more reps."
We'll see how the Lions proceed with Flowers. Okwara isn't counting out the dude they call 'The Terminator' on Detroit's defensive line; he's returned from plenty of injuries in the past. But the 23-year-old Okwara, a third-round pick in last year's draft, is young and hungry and ready for more.
"I'm ready for whatever workload we got," he said. "I think they got a lot of confidence in the players, whatever they have to put on (our) plate, so I'm ready for it. I'm a young guy. I'm ready to show whatever I can do and get on the field as much as I can."
The Lions would love for Okwara to get after the quarterback. Their pass rush has dried up after a decent start, due in part to the loss of Okwara's brother Romeo in Week 4. They've produced one total sack in the last three games, having been blanked two games in a row, and are tied for second to last in the NFL with just 14 sacks on season. (Browns All-Pro DE Myles Garrett has produced 13 sacks by himself.)
None of this is lost on Okwara.
"Just being a defensive end, outside linebacker, pass rusher, I mean, I know I got to do a lot better," he said. "That's definitely something I work on every day and try and be better at to make plays for the team. I'm trying to get on the field more, whether that's man coverage or getting after the quarterback. It doesn't matter."
He's making a push, and Sunday might bring his biggest opportunity yet. It will be Okwara's job to seize it.