Sione Takitaki (born June 8, 1995) is an American 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 ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

. 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 ...

at BYU and was selected by the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

in the third round of the

2019 NFL draft The 2019 NFL draft was the 84th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2019 NFL season. The draft was held on April 25–27 in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville. The first round was held ...

College career

Takitaki played

at BYU from 2014 to 2018. In four seasons with the team, he totaled 237 tackles, including 32.5 tackles for a loss, with 14.5 sacks. As a senior, he served as a

team captain In team sport, captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field. In eithe ...

and led the Cougars with 118 tackles.

Professional career

Cleveland Browns

Takitaki was selected by the

in the third round with the 80th overall pick in the

. In Week 11 of the 2020 season 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 ...

, Takitaki intercepted a pass thrown by

Carson Wentz Carson James Wentz (born December 30, 1992) is an American professional football quarterback. He played college football for the North Dakota State Bison, where he won two consecutive NCAA FCS national championships as the starter. Wentz was s ...

and returned it 50 yards for a touchdown during the 22–17 win. This was Takitaki's first career interception and touchdown. Takitaki was placed on the reserve/

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

list by the Browns on November 25, 2020, and activated on December 4. In Week 14 against the

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

on ''Monday Night Football'', Takitaki recorded his first career sack on

Lamar Jackson Lamar Demeatrice Jackson Jr. (born January 7, 1997) is an American professional football quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Louisville Cardinals, winning the Heisman T ...

during the 47–42 loss. Takitaki produced the biggest play of his career that season in the AFC Wildcard game against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

, intercepting a

Ben Roethlisberger Benjamin Todd Roethlisberger Sr. ( ; born March 2, 1982), nicknamed "Big Ben", is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons with the Pittsburgh Ste ...

pass with 3:16 left in the fourth quarter to seal a 48–37 victory. Takitaki entered the 2022 season as a starting linebacker alongside Anthony Walker Jr. and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. He suffered a torn ACL in Week 13 and was placed on injured reserve on December 7, 2022. On March 16, 2023, Takitaki signed a one-year contract extension with the Browns.

New England Patriots

On March 14, 2024, Takitaki signed a two-year contract with the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

. He was placed on the reserve/ PUP list to begin the season. He was activated on October 12. Takitaki was released by the Patriots on February 19, 2025.

Career statistics

Regular season

Postseason

Personal life

Takitaki, of Tongan descent, was born to father Vaimaua and mother Fissipeau, the youngest of a family of seven children with four sisters and two brothers. Takitaki married Alyssa Penney on June 14, 2016, in

Sacramento, California Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat, seat of Sacramento County, California, Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento Rive ...

. His father died when he was 14. He was raised in

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

, with his faith being one of the reasons he chose to attend BYU.

References

External links

New England Patriots bioBYU Cougars bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Takitaki, Sione 1995 births Living people American people of Tongan descent American football linebackers BYU Cougars football players Cleveland Browns players Sportspeople from Colton, California Players of American football from San Bernardino County, California Latter Day Saints from California New England Patriots players Pacific Islander American players of American football