J. R. Tavai

J. R. Tavai
Tavai with the Ottawa Redblacks in 2019
No. 41
PositionLinebacker
Personal information
Born (1993-09-23) September 23, 1993
Inglewood, California, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight250 lb (113 kg)
Career information
High schoolMira Costa (Manhattan Beach, California)
CollegeUSC
NFL draft2015: undrafted
Career history
* Offseason or practice squad member only
Career NFL statistics
Tackles3
Sacks1
Interceptions0
Stats at Pro Football Reference 
Stats at CFL.ca

John Robert Tavai (born September 23, 1993) is an American former professional football linebacker. He played college football for the USC Trojans. He was signed by Tennessee Titans as an undrafted free agent in 2015. He was also a member of the Ottawa Redblacks, BC Lions and Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and the Helvetic Guards of the European League of Football.

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
6 ft 1+3⁄4 in
(1.87 m)		249 lb
(113 kg)		31+1⁄2 in
(0.80 m)		9+1⁄8 in
(0.23 m)		4.91 s1.71 s2.84 s4.63 s7.32 s30.5 in
(0.77 m)		9 ft 4 in
(2.84 m)		23 reps
Sources:[1][2]

Tennessee Titans

After going unselected in the 2015 NFL draft, Tavai signed with the Tennessee Titans on May 11, 2015.[3] On September 5, he was waived by Tennessee as a part of final roster cuts.[4] On November 11, Tavai was re-signed to the team's practice squad. On December 12, he was promoted to the active roster. In his first season with the Titans, Tavai played in four games and contributed with three defensive tackles, one sack, and a forced fumble.

On September 2, 2016, Tavai was released by the Titans as a part of final roster cuts.[5] He was re–signed to the team's practice squad on December 6.[6]

Ottawa Redblacks

On January 3, 2018, it was announced that Tavai had signed with the Ottawa Redblacks.[7] Over two seasons, he played in 22 regular season games, recording 57 defensive tackles, eight special teams tackles, seven sacks and four forced fumbles.

BC Lions

Upon entering free agency on February 11, 2020, Tavai signed with the BC Lions to a one-year contract.[8] Following the cancelled 2020 season he signed a one-year contract extension on January 12, 2021.[9] In his first season with the Lions Tavai played in nine games and recorded 15 defensive tackles, three special teams tackles, two quarterback sacks and one forced fumble. Following the 2021 season he was not re-signed by the Lions and became a fee agent in February 2022.

Hamilton Tiger-Cats

On February 9, 2022 Tavai signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.[10] On May 19, the Tiger-Cats placed Tavai on the retired list.[11]

Helvetic Guards

On December 24, 2022 Tavai signed with the Helvetic Guards of the European League of Football.

Personal life

Tavai is of Samoan descent.[12] He has four brothers who played Division I NCAA football: older brother Jordan played at Kansas, younger brother Jahlani played at Hawaii and was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the 2nd round of the 2019 NFL draft[13], and younger brothers Justus and Jonah both played for San Diego State before becoming a professional rugby player and CFL player respectively. His uncle, John Schuster is a former rugby union player who represented New Zealand as a member of the All Blacks.[12]

References

  1. ↑ "J.R. Tavai Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  2. ↑ "2015 NFL Draft Scout J.R. Tavai College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Titans Agree to Terms with 14 Undrafted Free Agents". TitansOnline.com. May 11, 2015. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
  4. ↑ Kuharsky, Paul (September 5, 2015). "Tennessee Titans cut 18 players, including WR Hakeem Nicks". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
  5. ↑ Wyatt, Jim (September 2, 2016). "Titans Down to 53 Players: A Position-by-Position Look". TitansOnline.com. Archived from the original on August 7, 2017.
  6. ↑ Morris, Jimmy (December 6, 2016). "Titans add J.R. Tavai to practice squad". MusicCityMiracles.com.
  7. ↑ "Transactions January 3, 2018". Ottawa Redblacks. January 3, 2018.
  8. ↑ "Lions Land Defensive Lineman J.R. Tavai". BC Lions. February 11, 2020.
  9. ↑ Baker, Matt (January 12, 2021). "Defensive lineman J.R. Tavai returns to Lions for 2021". BCLions.com. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
  10. ↑ "Hamilton Tiger-Cats". Archived from the original on February 9, 2022. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
  11. ↑ 3Down Staff (May 19, 2022). "Ticats place defensive end J.R. Tavai on retired list, designate ratio-breaking right tackle Chris Van Zeyl as injured". 3DownNation. Retrieved May 19, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  12. 1 2 Horne, Ben (August 22, 2016). "GWS Giants share spotlight with US college stars". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
  13. ↑ Spangler, Sam (February 8, 2018). "QB's worst nightmare: Tavai multiplies on Hawaii defense". KHON2 News. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
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