Lions cornerback Amani Oruwariye did not make the Pro Bowl roster, an oversight that Detroit fans should rightly feel upset about. Oruwariye’s omission also bothered Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar, who named the plucky third-year CB as one of the top Pro Bowl snubs for 2021.
Oruwariye deserves to be there. Lions fans all know it; we’ve watched his progression from a sporadically good but often inconsistent corner in his first two years into a very good starter in Year 3. Farrar sees it too,
The Lions stole Oruwariye in the fifth round of the 2019 draft out of Penn State, and 2021 is the season Oruwariye in which he’s become one of the league’s primary playmakers at his position. Only Trevon Diggs (10) and J.C. Jackson (seven) have more interceptions than Oruwariye’s six, and he’s not a boom-or-bust guy, either — Oruwariye has allowed 41 catches on 69 targets for 582 yards, 154 yards after the catch, two touchdowns, and an opponent passer rating of 60.2. He’s done all that on a defense that currently ranks 29th in Defensive DVOA, and 26th against the pass.
So who would Oruwariye replace on the Pro Bowl roster? Farrar gives the boot to the man whose role Oruwariye now replaces in Detroit: Eagles CB Darius Slay.
