Xavier Filoitumua Sua-Filo (born January 1, 1991) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

UCLA Bruins The UCLA Bruins are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Los Angeles. The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Big Ten Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF ...

, earning second-team

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors in 2013. He was selected by the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team plays its home games at N ...

in the second round of the

2014 NFL draft The 2014 NFL draft was the 79th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players to the league. The draft, officially the "Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall in New Y ...

Early life

A native of

Pleasant Grove, Utah Pleasant Grove, originally named Battle Creek, is a city in Utah County, Utah, Utah County, Utah, United States, known as "Utah's City of Trees". It is part of the Provo, Utah, Provo–Orem, Utah, Orem Provo-Orem metropolitan area, Metropoli ...

, Sua-Filo attended

Timpview High School Timpview High School (THS) is a public secondary school located in Provo, Utah, United States. Timpview is a 5A school and is one of the three high schools in the Provo City School District. The current principal is Momi Tu'ua. Academics ...

Provo, Utah Provo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Utah County, Utah, United States. It is south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front, and lies between the cities of Orem, Utah, Orem to the north and Springville, Utah, Springville to the south ...

, where he was a three-year starter and a ''

Parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually some variety ...

'' magazine

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line ( ...

. He contributed to his school winning state championships in 2006, 2007 and 2008, while setting a state record for most consecutive wins (36). He was teammates with future NFL players

Stephen Paea Stephen Paea ( ; born May 11, 1988) is a New Zealand former American football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Oregon State Beavers football, Oregon State Beavers, earnin ...

and Bronson Kaufusi. As a senior, he was named the state of Utah 4A Offensive Player of the Year. He was regarded as a four-star recruit and was ranked as the number seven

offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive (military), type of military operation * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Fighting words, spoken words which would have a tendency to cause acts of violence by the ...

in his class by '' Rivals.com''.

College career

Sua-Filo accepted a football scholarship from

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

. As a freshman, he started all 13 games at

left tackle A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a tackle played on both offense and Defensive tackle, defense. In the modern system of ...

. He became the first

true freshman The following terms are used in American football, both conventional and indoor. Some of these terms are also in use in Canadian football; for a list of terms unique to that code, see '' Glossary of Canadian football''. 0–9 ...

to start a season-opener on the offensive side of the ball for UCLA and also had the most starts by a true freshman at any non-kicking position in school history. In 2010, he left school to serve a two-year

Mormon mission Missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church)—often referred to as Mormon missionaries—are volunteer representatives of the church who engage variously in Proselytism, proselytizing, church service, humanitaria ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

and South Alabama. He rode a special ordered bike capable for his 300-pound frame during his mission work from January 2010 to December 2011. In 2012, he returned and started all 14 games at

left guard In American football, a guard (G), otherwise known as an offensive guard (OG), is an offensive line player who lines up between the center and the tackles. Like other offensive line positions, guards are used primarily for blocking. Right ...

, while also seeing some action at left tackle. He helped

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

Johnathan Franklin Johnathan A. Franklin (born October 23, 1989) is an American former professional football player who was a running back for one season with the Green Bay Packers in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the UCLA Br ...

set a school record for most single-season rushing yards. As a junior, he started 7 games at left guard and 6 at left left tackle. On January 5, 2014, he decided to forgo his senior year at UCLA and declared for the

. During his college career he started 19 games at left tackle and 21 at left guard.

Professional career

Houston Texans

Sua-Filo was selected by the

with the first pick in the second round (33rd overall) of the 2014 NFL draft, to become the highest selected UCLA Bruins offensive lineman since

Jonathan Ogden Jonathan Phillip Ogden (born July 31, 1974) is an American former professional football player who was an offensive tackle and spent his entire career with the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football ...

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

. As a rookie, he missed all of the organized team activities because of his school's quarter system and played different positions along the offensive line during the preseason. He appeared in 13 games as a backup at left guard after not been able to pass Ben Jones on the depth chart. He started at

right guard In American football, a guard (G), otherwise known as an offensive guard (OG), is an offensive line player who lines up between the center and the tackles. Like other offensive line positions, guards are used primarily for blocking. Right ...

in place of an injured

Brandon Brooks Brandon Brooks (born August 19, 1989) is an American former professional football player who was a guard for 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Houston Texans and Philadelphia Eagles. He played college football for the M ...

in the sixth game against the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

. In 2015, with the retirement of

Chris Myers Chris Myers (born ) is an American sportscaster for FOX Sports. He has covered the Super Bowl, the World Series, the NBA Finals, the NCAA Final Four, The Masters, the U.S. Open, the Triple Crown, the Olympics and the Daytona 500. Early l ...

, Jones was moved to

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

and Sua-Filo competed for the left guard position. He played in 11 games, starting the final 9 including the playoffs at left guard. He struggled in pass protection during the season. In 2016, he appeared in 16 games with 15 starts. In 2017, the Texans used seven different offensive line starting combinations throughout the season. Only Sua-Filo and

right tackle A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a tackle played on both offense and Defensive tackle, defense. In the modern system of ...

Breno Giacomini started every game at their respective positions. He wasn't re-signed after the season.

Tennessee Titans

On March 27, 2018, Sua-Filo signed with the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

, reuniting with

Mike Vrabel Michael George Vrabel ( ; born August 14, 1975) is an American professional American football, football coach and former linebacker who is the head coach of the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played college footba ...

who was both the

linebackers coach In American football, a position coach is a team official in charge of coaching a specific position group. Position coaches have more specialized duties than the head coach, associate and assistant coach, and the offensive and defensive coordina ...

and

defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator (DC) is a coach responsible for a gridiron football team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, offensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's coaching structure, wit ...

with the Texans. He was brought in to compete with starter Quinton Spain at left guard. He was released on September 1, 2018.

Dallas Cowboys

On September 11, 2018, Sua-Filo was signed by the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

to replace backup guard

Kadeem Edwards Kadeem Edwards (born January 24, 1991) is an American former professional American football, football offensive guard in the National Football League (NFL) for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Dallas Cowboys. He was selected b ...

and provide depth in place of an injured

Parker Ehinger Parker Ehinger (born December 30, 1992) is an American former professional football guard. He played college football at the University of Cincinnati. He was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL draft. Early l ...

. He replaced injured rookie Connor Williams, as the starter at left guard in the ninth game against the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

. His performance helped to stabilize the offensive line. In 2019, he was a backup until Williams tore his right knee ACL in the Week 13 game against the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

. He started four games at left guard before suffering a high ankle sprain and a fractured fibula in the Week 16 game against the

. He was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

on December 24.

Cincinnati Bengals

On March 19, 2020, Sua-Filo signed a three-year, $10 million contract with the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

. He was placed on the active/ physically unable to perform list at the start of

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events ...

on August 3, 2020, and activated from the list five days later. He was named the starting right guard in Week 1, but suffered an ankle injury and was placed on injured reserve on September 15, 2020. He was activated on December 2, 2020. He appeared in six games with five starts at left guard. Sua-Filo entered the 2021 season as the Bengals starting right guard. He suffered a knee injury in Week 2 and was placed on injured reserve on October 9, 2021. He was activated on January 17, 2022, then released the next day and re-signed to the

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

. His contract expired when the teams season ended on February 13, 2022.

Personal life

Sua-Filo is fluent in Spanish, learning the language on his two-year church mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Alabama and Florida. Sua-Filo has three siblings: Hayley, Natasha, and Wilson. He majored in history with a minor in Spanish at UCLA.

References

External links

UCLA Bruins bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sua-filo, Xavier 1991 births Living people People from Pleasant Grove, Utah Players of American football from Provo, Utah American sportspeople of Samoan descent American football offensive guards American football offensive tackles UCLA Bruins football players Houston Texans players 21st-century American sportsmen Tennessee Titans players Dallas Cowboys players 21st-century Mormon missionaries Cincinnati Bengals players Pacific Islander American players of American football