Isaako Aaitui (born January 25, 1987) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

nose tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

. He was originally signed by the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 2011. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

UNLV The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes the S ...

Early years

Aaitui attended Faga'itua High School in Pago Pago, where he played

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

and

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

in addition to

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

prior to graduating in 2006.

College career

After redshirting at

in 2006, Aaitui made his Rebels debut in 2007, appearing in seven games and recording 10 tackles (two for a loss). 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. Aaitui started 10 of 12 games at defensive tackle as a junior in 2009, recording 31 tackles and 2.5 tackles for a loss. 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.

Professional career

Miami Dolphins

After going undrafted in the

2012 NFL Draft The 2012 NFL draft was the 77th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players for their rosters. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held ...

, Aaitui did not attend training camp and did not sign with a team until joining the

practice squad In sports, 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. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

of the

on October 5, 2011. He remained on the practice squad the rest of his rookie season and was re-signed to a future contract in January 2012. Aaitui's attempt to make the Dolphins' roster in 2012 was documented on the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

series '' Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Miami Dolphins''. 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.

New York Jets

After being waived by the Dolphins, Aaitui made his first NFL roster when he was claimed by the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

on September 2. However, he suffered a

torn ACL An anterior cruciate ligament injury occurs when the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is either stretched, partially torn, or completely torn. The most common injury is a complete tear. Symptoms include pain, an audible cracking sound during inju ...

and

MCL The litre (international spelling) or liter (American English spelling) (SI symbols L and l, other symbol used: ℓ) is a metric unit of volume. It is equal to 1 cubic decimetre (dm3), 1000 cubic centimetres (cm3) or 0.001 cubic metre (m3) ...

in his first practice with the Jets and was subsequently waived two days later.

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 The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

in May 2013. However, he was once again waived during final cuts on August 31.

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 Paul Fuapapa Soliai (born December 30, 1983) is a former American football defensive tackle. He played college football at University of Utah. He was drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the fourth round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He has also played ...

. He was promoted to the active roster on October 19 after the release of

Marvin Austin Marvin Austin Jr. (born January 10, 1989) is a former American football nose tackle. He played college football at North Carolina and was drafted by the New York Giants in the second round of the 2011 NFL Draft. Austin also played for the Miami D ...

. Aaitui made his NFL debut the following day, participating in 19 defensive snaps in the team's home loss to the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

Washington Redskins

Aaitui signed with the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

practice squad on December 16, 2014. He signed a

futures contract In finance, a futures contract (sometimes called a futures) is a standardized legal contract to buy or sell something at a predetermined price for delivery at a specified time in the future, between parties not yet known to each other. The asset ...

on December 29. On May 4, 2015, he was waived by the Redskins.

References

External links

Miami Dolphins bioNew Orleans Saints bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aaitui, Isaako 1987 births Living people American football defensive tackles American sportspeople of Samoan descent Miami Dolphins players New Orleans Saints players New York Jets players People from Pago Pago Players of American football from American Samoa Tennessee Titans players UNLV Rebels football players Washington Redskins players