Okoronkwo happy to finally make NFL debut

[CGI_Ram]

Ogbonnia Okoronkwo happy to finally make NFL debut

A fifth-round draft choice in 2018, Ogbonnia Okoronkwo at long last played in his first Rams game after injuries delayed his debut.

www.therams.com

Ogbonnia Okoronkwo happy to finally make NFL debut

HONOLULU, Hawaii – After a foot injury cost him his rookie season in 2018 and a hamstring injury held him out of the Rams’ 2019 preseason opener, linebacker Ogbonnia Okoronkwo finally got to don L.A.’s royal blue and yellow in a live game this weekend.

The Oklahoma product made his NFL debut in Saturday night’s 14-10 preseason loss to the Dallas Cowboys, having an active presence within Los Angeles’ defense.

“All of my teammates, they were so happy for me,” Okoronkwo said. “They really kept my spirits up, really encouraged me. The coaches encouraged me. Today was great.”

The appearance was long overdue for him – 593 days to be exact.

Okoronkwo last played in a live football game on January 1, 2018, when his Sooners took on Georgia the Rose Bowl. Less than a month after the Rams chose him with the 160th overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft in late April, he sustained a broken foot during their organized team activities which required surgery.

He was placed on the physically unable to perform list prior to the start of L.A.’s 2018 training camp and not taken off until Nov. 5. Then came the hamstring injury.

Okoronkwo didn’t dwell on it, though, and made his presence felt right away. Entering Saturday’s contest early in the second quarter, he finished with one tackle, one pass breakup and one quarterback hit. He also drew a pair of holding penalties.

“Getting Obo out there, it’s been great to see him,” Rams head Sean McVay said. “You some of the flashes of why we liked him so much, why he was a productive player at Oklahoma.”

Surprisingly, as active as Okoronkwo was on Saturday, he didn’t view his performance through the same lens as his head coach. However, he was quick to credit the Rams’ training staff for their work in helping getting him get back on the field.

“I didn’t feel like I did too well,” Okoronkwo said. “I’m going to go back to practice and keep working, but honestly, I’m just happy I got to play. I’m grateful that we have the great training staff that we do.”

Besides the training staff, Okoronkwo also showed his appreciation toward his teammates for helping him keep a positive mindset throughout the adversity he faced.

“I mean, if you are around this team, these coaches, the training staff, everybody’s just very uplifting, very positive,” Okoronkwo said. “It’s really easy to stay (upbeat) and keep your head above water when they hear you’re going through something like that, because everybody’s going to give you some uplifting words.”

Now several months removed from the injury, Okoronkwo is glad to be back

“It feels good to play football again,” he said.

 

[Riverumbbq]

I bet he is happy. With a fan base contemplating his future due to a pretty stacked group of competitors and his missed opportunities from a past injury, he couldn't have timed his return much better than his game against Dallas. Of course, one good pre-season game won't project him to an elite status just yet, but his performance likely secures a spot on the 53 so long as he remains injury free for the remainder of the pre-season. Still, a couple more games like this and the Rams will be very happy campers with our very deep OLB corps. This could also bode well for how the Rams approach free agency in 2020, but don't let me get ahead of myself.

 

[oldnotdead]

Fowler needs a bookend on passing downs. I hope Ogbo is the man. That will allow them to pull the NT and insert Rapp to cover the TE and RB's. Drawing holding calls is second only to getting a sack.

 

[ramfan46]

I didn’t even know he was playing, but I recognized him right away when he got in the game. He has a plan and feel for pass rushing. I like that he wasn’t impressed with his own performance. Hoping he can stay healthy, I think he’s just scratching the surface of his potential. He could get some really nice match ups rushing with Donald and Fowler drawing most of the attention.

 

[OldSchool]

Good for him! I know most of us around here were happy for it too

 

[Ram65]

Great to finally see him play and play well against the second-team defense. I want to see him get pressure against good OTs. He does have a nice spin move and is good on stunts. Let's hope he stays healthy and keeps getting pressure on the QBs. The very encouraging first game by Obo is what many were looking for.