Jordan Mailata

Jordan Mailata (born 31 March 1997) is a Samoan American football offensive tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played rugby league in Australia for the South Sydney Rabbitohs in the National Rugby League (NRL) in their Under 20s team.

Jordan Mailata
Mailata in 2020
No. 68 – Philadelphia Eagles
Position:Offensive tackle
Personal information
Born: (1997-03-31) 31 March 1997
Bankstown, Sydney, Australia
Height:6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Weight:346 lb (157 kg)
Career information
High school:Condell Park
(Condell Park, NSW, Australia)
NFL Draft:2018 / Round: 7 / Pick: 233
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2020
Games played:15
Games started:10
Player stats at NFL.com
Jordan Mailata
Personal information
Full nameJordan Mailata
Playing information
PositionProp
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2017 South Sydney U-20s 12 8
As of 24 December 2018
Source: [1]

Background

When Mailata was 17, he fainted during a rugby league workout, and needed emergency surgery to repair both the upper and lower chambers of his heart. He went on hiatus from rugby league for a year and then played for the South Sydney Rabbitohs.[2] After seeing clips of him playing rugby league, NFL executives invited Mailata to try out for their International Player Pathway Program. He went to Florida to train, and his training was part of the NFL Network show Undrafted.[2] Prior to training for the NFL at IMG Academy in Florida, Mailata had never played American football and admitted that his knowledge of the game was minimal. When asked what position he wanted to play, he suggested that he wanted to be a left tackle since he knew of that position from the movie The Blind Side.[2]

NFL career

Mailata was the 233rd overall pick in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL Draft by the Eagles.[3] Mailata became the second player to be drafted with no American high school or college experience after German Moritz Böhringer, following the path of compatriot Jarryd Hayne, who also converted from rugby league. Mailata signed a four-year deal worth $2.5 million with a signing bonus of $89,392.[2]

On 1 September 2018, Mailata made the initial 53-man roster for the Eagles.[4] He was placed on injured reserve on 14 December 2018, without appearing in any games of his rookie year.[5]

After missing the first two games of the 2019 season with a back injury, Mailata was placed on injured reserve again on 21 September 2019.[6]

Mailata was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the Eagles on 29 July 2020.[7] He was activated from the list on 13 August 2020.[8] On 13 September, Mailata made his NFL debut against the Washington Football Team, replacing injured rookie Jack Driscoll in the third quarter.[9] Mailata made his first start for the Philadelphia Eagles in week 4 of the 2020 season against the San Francisco 49ers, due an injury to Jason Peters.[10]

Family

Mailata's parents immigrated to Australia from Samoa.[2]

See also

References
  1. https://www.nrl.com/news/2018/03/21/former-rabbitohs-man-mountain-jordan-mailata-keen-nfl-shot/
  2. Bishara, Motez. "'It's like going in blindfolded': Jordan Mailata's incredible NFL journey". CNN. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
  3. Knoblauch, Austin (28 April 2018). "Eagles draft Australian rugby player Jordan Mailata". NFL.com.
  4. Gowton, Brandon Lee (1 September 2018). "Jordan Mailata makes the Eagles' 53-man roster". BleedingGreenNation. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  5. McPherson, Chris (14 December 2018). "Eagles Place Jordan Mailata On Injured Reserve". PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
  6. McPherson, Chris (21 September 2019). "Eagles promote WR Greg Ward from the practice squad, place Jordan Mailata on Injured Reserve". PhiladelphiaEagles.com. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
  7. McPherson, Chris (29 July 2020). "Eagles place three players on Reserve/COVID-19 list". PhiladelphiaEagles.com. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  8. McPherson, Chris (13 August 2020). "Eagles activate Jordan Mailata from the Reserve/COVID-19 list". PhiladelphiaEagles.com. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
  9. Savage, Nic (13 September 2020). "156kg Australian Jordan Mailata shines on NFL debut for the Philadelphia Eagles". News.com.au. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  10. Domowitch, Paul (5 October 2020). "Jordan Mailata was ready when the Eagles finally called his number". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 5 October 2020.


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