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Talanoa Hufanga
American football player (born 2000) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Talanoa Hufanga (/ˌtæləˈnoʊə huˈfɑːŋɡə/ TA-lə-NOH-ə hoo-FAHN-gə;[1] born February 1, 2000) is an American professional football safety for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans and was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL draft.
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Early life
Hufanga attended Crescent Valley High School in Corvallis, Oregon.[2] He played safety, wide receiver, and quarterback. As a senior in 2017, he was the Polynesian High School National Player of the Year. He played in the 2018 U.S. Army All-American Game.[3] Hufanga committed to the University of Southern California (USC) to play college football.[4][5][6]
College career
As a true freshman at USC in 2018, Hufanga played in eight games with five starts before suffering a season-ending broken collarbone.[7] He finished the season with 51 tackles. As a sophomore in 2019, he started all 10 games he played in and recorded 90 tackles and 3.5 sacks.[8] Hufanga returned to USC as a starter his junior year in 2020.[9][10] He and BYU quarterback Zach Wilson were selected as co-recipients of the 2020 Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award.[11] For the 2020 season, Hufanga was a Consensus All-American.[12] In addition, he won Pac-12 Conference Defensive Player of the Year.[13]
College statistics
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Professional career
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Pre-draft
NFL.com lead analyst Lance Zierlein projected Hufanga to be selected in the fourth or fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft.[14] Bleacher Report had him ranked as the 12th best safety prospect and projected him to be selected in the fourth round.[15] Dane Brugler of the Athletic had Hufanga ranked as the eighth best safety prospect.[16] Scouts Inc. had him as the 20th best safety in their big board (212th overall).[17]
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers selected Hufanga in the fifth round (180th overall) of the 2021 NFL draft. He was the 14th safety drafted in 2021.[20]
2021
On May 13, 2021, the San Francisco 49ers signed Hufanga to a four-year, $3.72 million rookie contract that includes an initial signing bonus of $240,152.[21][22]
Throughout training camp, Hufanga competed to be the starting strong safety against Tavon Wilson, Tarvarius Moore, and Jaquiski Tartt.[23] Head coach Kyle Shanahan named Hufanga the No. 2 strong safety on the depth chart to begin the season. Jaquiski Tartt was named the starting strong safety alongside free safety Jimmie Ward.[24]
On September 12, 2021, Hufanga made his professional regular season debut during the San Francisco 49ers' season-opener at the Detroit Lions, but saw limited snaps on defense and special teams as the 49ers won 41–33. On October 31, 2021, Hufanga earned his first career start in place of Jaquiski Tartt, who was placed on injured reserve due to an injury. He collected a season-high five combined tackles (four solo) during a 33–22 win at the Chicago Bears. He was inactive for two games (Weeks 16–17) after sustaining a knee injury.[25] He finished his rookie campaign with a total of 32 combined tackles (28 solo) and two pass deflections in 15 games and three starts.[26] He received an overall grade of 62.5 from Pro Football Focus as a rookie in 2021.
The San Francisco 49ers finished the 2021 NFL season third in the NFC West with a 10–7 record, clinching a Wildcard berth. He was sidelined during a 23–17 win at the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Wild-Card Game. On January 22, 2022, Hufanga appeared in his first career playoff game and scored his first career touchdown after returning a blocked punt during a 13–10 win at the Green Bay Packers in the Divisional Round. He scored his touchdown after defensive lineman Jordan Willis blocked a punt by Corey Bojorquez and returned it six–yard to score a critical touchdown in the fourth quarter.[27][28]
2022
During training camp, Hufanga competed to be a starting safety against Tayler Hawkins, Leon O'Neal Jr., and George Odum. Head coach Kyle Shanahan named him the starting strong safety to begin the season and paired him with Tashaun Gipson.[29]
On September 11, 2022, Hufanga started in the San Francisco 49ers season-opener at the Chicago Bears and collected a season-high 11 combined tackles (nine solo), made one pass deflection, and had the first interception of his career on a pass by Justin Fields to wide receiver Darnell Mooney during the 10–19 loss. On October 3, 2022, he made four combined tackles (three solo), a pass deflection, and had the first pick-six of his career during a 24–9 victory against the Los Angeles Rams. His touchdown occurred after he intercepted a pass thrown by Matthew Stafford to wide receiver Cooper Kupp and returned it for a 52–yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.[30] The following week, he recorded five combined tackles (two solo), broke up a pass, and made his first career sack on Baker Mayfield for a one–yard loss during a 37–15 win at the Carolina Panthers in Week 5. In Week 10, he produced two combined tackles (one solo), made a pass deflection, and had a critical game-sealing interception on a pass thrown by Justin Herbert to wide receiver Josh Palmer with less than 53 seconds in the fourth quarter as the 49ers defeated the Los Angeles Chargers 22–16. He started all 17 games during the 2022 NFL season and finished with a total of 97 combined tackles (66 solo), nine passes defended, a career-high four interceptions, two forced fumbles, and one sack.[31] He earned a Pro Bowl nomination and first team All-Pro honors.[32][33] He was ranked 78th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2023.[34] He received an overall grade of 72.1 from Pro Football Focus in 2022.[35]
The San Francisco 49ers finished the 2022 NFL season a top the NFC West with a 13–4 record to clinch a playoff berth. On January 14, 2023, Hufanga had his first career start in a playoff game and made five combined tackles (three solo) as the 49ers defeated the Seattle Seahawks 41–23 in the NFC Wild-card Game. The following week, the 49ers defeated the Dallas Cowboys 19–12 during the Divisional Round. On January 29, 2023, Hufanga started in the NFC Championship Game, recording six combined tackles (five solo) and one pass deflection as the 49ers lost 7–31 at the Philadelphia Eagles.
2023
On February 9, 2023, the San Francisco 49ers hired Steve Wilks to be their new defensive coordinator after DeMeco Ryans accepted the head coaching position with the Houston Texans.[36] Head coach Kyle Shanahan named Hufanga as the starting strong safety to begin the season and paired him with Tashaun Gipson.[37]
On September 10, 2023, Hufanga started in the San Francisco 49ers' season-opener at the Pittsburgh Steelers and made five solo tackles, a pass deflection, and intercepted a pass by Kenny Pickett to tight end Connor Heyward during a 30–7 victory. In Week 8, he collected a season-high ten combined tackles (eight solo) during a 17–31 loss against the Cincinnati Bengals. On November 19, 2023, Hufanga made one solo tackle before exiting in the second quarter of a 27–14 win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after suffering a torn ACL. On November 21, 2023, the 49ers officially placed Hufanga on injured reserve for the remainder of the season due to his torn ACL.[38] He finished the season with 52 combined tackles (39 solo), three pass deflections, and three interceptions in ten games and ten starts.[39]
The San Francisco 49ers finished the 2023 NFL season a top the NFC West with a 12–5 record, clinching a first-round bye. They defeated the Green Bay Packers 24–21 in the Divisional Round and defeated the Detroit Lions in the NFC Championship Game 34–31. On February 11, 2024, the 49ers lost Super Bowl LVIII in overtime 25–22 to the Kansas City Chiefs.[40]
2024
Hufanga remained on injured reserve for the first two games of the season (Weeks 1–2). He was inactive during a 30–13 win against the New England Patriots in Week 4 after injuring his ankle. In Week 5, Hufanga made one solo tackle before exiting in the second quarter of a 23–24 loss against the Arizona Cardinals due to a wrist injury. On October 9, 2024, the 49ers officially placed him on injured reserve due to torn ligaments in his wrist. On December 7, 2024, Hufanga was activated off of the injured reserve after he was inactive for seven consecutive games (Weeks 6–13).[41] In Week 15, he collected a season-high eight combined tackles (two solo) during a 6–12 loss against the Los Angeles Rams. He finished the 2024 NFL season with a total of 38 combined tackles (20 solo) in seven games and seven starts. He received an overall grade of 57.8 from Pro Football Focus.[42]
Denver Broncos
2025
On March 10, 2025, the Denver Broncos signed Hufanga to a three-year, $45 million contract that includes $20 million guaranteed.[43][44][22]
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NFL career statistics
Regular season
Personal life
Hufanga is of Tongan descent. He is the son of Tevita and Tanya Hufanga and has a brother named TJ.[45][46] Hufanga also trains with Hall of Fame safety Troy Polamalu.[47][48]
He is the cousin of Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Marlon Tuipulotu and Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Tuli Tuipulotu.[49]
References
External links
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