ALLEN PARK, Mich. — Jeff Okudah was trying to keep a positive mindset following the immediate evaluation of his injured leg from last year's season opener, but as he eased himself into his aunt's car outside of Ford Field after the game, an emotional wave washed over the Detroit Lions cornerback.
"The second I got into the car with my aunt, I just broke down and started crying," Okudah said. "She had never really seen me cry before, but it was a lot of like — I just had big hopes for that last year. So that day I was really down. It kind of felt like I was living a nightmare, honestly, man."
After a tumultuous rookie year in 2020, Okudah was in a good place, both physically and mentally entering his second season. Throughout training camp he looked like a far more confident player, and the principles of stoic philosophy he had studied during the offseason had him at peace with his early struggles and the continued pressures that came with being the No. 3 pick in his draft.
