Amani

Oruwariye

Oruwariye missed most of the 2023 season after suffering a serious neck injury in September. He had nine interceptions in three seasons with the Lions before signing with the Jaguars in 2023. Assuming he’s fully recovered from his 2023 neck injury, Oruwariye is a good bet to land with another team in need of secondary depth.

That’s welcome news. Oruwariye was stretchered and taken off the practice field in an ambulance after a collision during a special teams drill. He was taken to Hackensack Medical Center and had movement in all his extremities. The tests all came back negative and it thankfully appears like the veteran has avoided a serious injury after a scary scene.

Oruwariye joined the Giants on a one-year deal in the offseason. He was waived before Week 1 be rejoined the Giants on their practice squad. Oruwariye went down after a collision on a kickoff drill and needed immediate assistance from trainers. He was eventually stabilized on a backboard and taken off the field on a stretcher. Oruwariye left practice in an ambulance.

Oruwariye had a six-pick 2021 in the Motor City but couldn’t even keep a starting job for 2022. He graded out as one of the league’s worst cover corners on Pro Football Focus, and the Lions seemingly made no effort to keep him. He will work for a reserve/special teams role in New York. Perhaps he could carve out a niche as a play-making part-timer.

Oruwariye got in a limited practice on Thursday but did not participate in the team’s practice on Friday. Cornerback Bobby Price is listed behind Oruwariye on the depth chart and could be in line for a busy day against a talented Commanders wide receiver corps.

Oruwariye (6’2/205) started for only one season in Happy Valley but earned first-team All-Big Ten as a senior and graduated with 30 career pass breakups and eight picks. PFF College credited Oruwariye with a minuscule 52% completion rate allowed when targeted in 2018, and he earned national notice with dominant one-on-one drills at January’s Senior Bowl. Oruwariye further helped himself with 74th-percentile SPARQ results in Indy, blazing 4.47 with a twitchy 6.82 three-cone time. Plus-sized with NFL-level athleticism and ball skills, Oruwariye is a prime candidate to outkick his draft position.

Oruwariye (6’2/205) started for only one season in Happy Valley but earned first-team All-Big Ten as a senior and graduated with 30 career pass breakups and eight picks. PFF College credited Oruwariye with a minuscule 52% completion rate allowed when targeted in 2018, and he earned national notice with dominant one-on-one drills at January’s Senior Bowl. Oruwariye further helped himself with 74th-percentile SPARQ results in Indy, blazing 4.47 with a twitchy 6.82 three-cone time. Plus-sized with NFL-level athleticism and ball skills, Oruwariye is a prime candidate to outkick his draft position.

Oruwariye measured in at 6-foot-2, 205-pounds, so this is a perfectly fine time for the former Nittany Lion. He also showed off his quickness, as his three-cone drill time (6.82 seconds) and 20-yard shuttle mark (4.16) both ranked in the top ten of defensive backs. Oruwariye received a wide range of reviews on his draft stock coming into Indianapolis, but we would say that these numbers help build the case that he’s a Day 2 prospect.

Ledyard notes that Oruwariye “too often fail[s] to be physical with receivers and re-route them in press coverage” and that he has shown issues defending against quicker wideouts. Digging in with specifics from the Senior Bowl practice week, Ledyard points to the first day of practice (Tuesday), when NC State’s Jakobi Meyers “lit him up.” In the analyst’s estimation, matters continued in mostly unimpressive fashion through the rest of the week, which culminated in dud fashion when the 6-foot-1, 204-pounder suffered an apparent leg injury on Thursday. Ledyard saw little in Oruwariye’s play this week to reinforce the notion that he might be deserving of a top-40 selection.

Not much is known about the severity of Oruwariye’s injury, but according to multiple reports he was seen pointing at his right knee. Considered to be the top cornerback at the Senior Bowl, the 6'1, 205-pounder has good size for a corner and has been praised for his ball skills by scouts. Oruwariye is projected to be a Day 2 selection in this spring’s NFL Draft.