Isaako Aaitui
Isaako Aaitui (born January 25, 1987) is a former American football nose tackle. He was originally signed by the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent in 2011. He played college football at UNLV.
| No. 97 | |||||||||
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| Position: | Nose tackle | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | January 25, 1987 Pago Pago, American Samoa | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 307 lb (139 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Faga'itua (Pago Pago, American Samoa) | ||||||||
| College: | UNLV | ||||||||
| Undrafted: | 2011 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||||
Early years
Aaitui attended Faga'itua High School in Pago Pago, where he played rugby, volleyball and soccer in addition to football prior to graduating in 2006.[1]
College career
After redshirting at UNLV in 2006, Aaitui made his Rebels debut in 2007, appearing in seven games and recording 10 tackles (two for a loss).[1] He started nine of 12 games played as a sophomore in 2008, totaling 32 tackles (14 solo), leading the team with seven tackles for a loss and tying for the team lead with two sacks.[1]
Aaitui started 10 of 12 games at defensive tackle as a junior in 2009, recording 31 tackles and 2.5 tackles for a loss.[1] He closed out his collegiate career with 27 tackles (5 for a loss), 1.5 sacks, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a blocked kick.[1]
Professional career
Miami Dolphins
After going undrafted in the 2012 NFL Draft, Aaitui did not attend training camp and did not sign with a team until joining the practice squad of the Miami Dolphins on October 5, 2011.[2] He remained on the practice squad the rest of his rookie season and was re-signed to a future contract in January 2012.[3]
Aaitui's attempt to make the Dolphins' roster in 2012 was documented on the HBO series Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Miami Dolphins.[4] He came up just short of earning a roster spot and was waived by the team during final cuts, with the organization hoping to retain him on the practice squad.[4]
New York Jets
After being waived by the Dolphins, Aaitui made his first NFL roster when he was claimed by the New York Jets on September 2.[4] However, he suffered a torn ACL and MCL in his first practice with the Jets and was subsequently waived two days later.[4]
New Orleans Saints
After spending the 2012 season out of football with a knee injury, Aaitui signed a two-year contract with the New Orleans Saints in May 2013.[5] However, he was once again waived during final cuts on August 31.[6]
Miami Dolphins (second stint)
Aaitui was re-signed by the Dolphins on September 17, 2013 to provide depth at the defensive tackle position due to an injury to Paul Soliai.[7] He was promoted to the active roster on October 19 after the release of Marvin Austin.[8] Aaitui made his NFL debut the following day, participating in 19 defensive snaps in the team's home loss to the Buffalo Bills.[9]
Washington Redskins
Aaitui signed with the Washington Redskins practice squad on December 16, 2014.[10] He signed a futures contract on December 29.[11]
On May 4, 2015, he was waived by the Redskins.[12]
References
- "Player Bio: Isaako Aaitui". UNLVRebels.com. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
- "Dolphins sign OT Will Barker away from Buccaneers; make practice squad moves". Phins-Spotlight.com. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
- "Dolphins re-sign seven to future contracts". Phins-Spotlight.com. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
- "Hard Knocks' Isaako Aaitui waived by Jets after injury". NFL.com. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
- "New Orleans Saints Agree To Terms With DT Isaako Aaitui". NewOrleansSaints.com. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
- "Saints Roster Cuts 2013: Saints Waive Isaako Aaitui". CanalStreetChronicles.com. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
- "With Soliai sidelined, Dolphins bring back Isaako Aaitui, Al Lapuaho". FinNation.com. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
- "Dolphins promote DT Isaako Aaitui to the 53-man roster". The Sun Sentinel. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
- "Bills vs Dolphins final look: Miami defensive snap counts". ThePhinsider.com. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
- Kring-Schreifels, Jake. "More On New Redskin Isaako Aaitui". Redskins.com. Archived from the original on March 13, 2016. Retrieved December 19, 2014.
- Jones, Mike (December 29, 2014). "Redskins sign eight players to futures contracts". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved December 29, 2014.
- Keim, John (May 4, 2015). "Redskins cut 13 players, start adding UDFAs". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on May 5, 2015. Retrieved May 4, 2015.