David Onyemata

David Onyemata (born November 13, 1992) is a professional American football nose tackle for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Manitoba.

David Onyemata
refer to caption
Onyemata in 2023
No. 90 – Atlanta Falcons
Position:Nose tackle
Personal information
Born: (1992-11-13) November 13, 1992
Lagos, Nigeria
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:300 lb (136 kg)
Career information
High school:Chrisland Schools
(Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria)
University:Manitoba (2012–2015)
NFL Draft:2016 / Round: 4 / Pick: 120
CFL Draft:2016 / Round: 4 / Pick: 35
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career NFL statistics as of 2022
Total tackles:244
Sacks:23.0
Forced fumbles:1
Fumble recoveries:2
Interceptions:1
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Early years

Onyemata is a native of Lagos, Nigeria, where he attended the Chrisland Schools but he graduated from Rainbow College. He immigrated, on his own, to Winnipeg in 2011 to attend college the University of Manitoba.

College career

Onyemata had never seen a gridiron football game until he came to Winnipeg, but he became a standout player for the Manitoba Bisons. He won the 2015 J. P. Metras Trophy as the top down lineman in CIS football,[1] was invited to play in the East–West Shrine Game, and became the top Canadian prospect in the 2016 draft.[2]

Professional career

New Orleans Saints

Onyemata was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL draft as the 120th overall pick.[3] He was the first player from the University of Manitoba ever selected for the NFL draft, and the twelfth NFL draft pick from the CIS (now U Sports). The Saints traded their fifth round picks for 2016 and 2017 to Washington in order to draft Onyemata.[4][5] As of the 2020 NFL Draft, he remains the most recent draft selection from CIS/U Sports. He was also selected by the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the fourth round of the 2016 CFL Draft.[6]

In 2018, Onyemata played in all 16 games with four starts, recording 35 tackles, 4.5 sacks, and a forced fumble.

Onyemata was suspended the first game of the 2019 season for violating the league's substances of abuse policy.[7] He was reinstated to the active roster on September 10, 2019.

On March 18, 2020, Onyemata signed a three-year, $27 million contract extension with the Saints.[8]

In Week 9 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday Night Football, Onyemata recorded his first career interception off a pass thrown by Tom Brady during the 38–3 win. [9]

On March 3, 2021, Onyemata agreed to convert part of his $7MM base salary into a signing bonus to free up cap space for New Orleans. On July 16, Onyemata was suspended six games by the NFL after testing positive for a banned substance.[10]

Atlanta Falcons

On March 16, 2023, Onyemata signed a three-year, $35 million contract with the Atlanta Falcons, reuniting him with his former Saints position coach, Ryan Nielsen, who was named the Falcons defensive coordinator.[11]

References
  1. Kirk Penton, "Manitoba Bisons David Onyemata wins J.P. Metras trophy as top down lineman in CIS", Winnipeg Sun, November 26, 2015.
  2. "David Onyemata only Canadian with good shot at NFL draft", Toronto Sun, April 26, 2016.
  3. "2016 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  4. Larry Holder, "Saints trade up for mystery man Canadian DT David Onyemata", The Times-Picayune, April 30, 2016.
  5. "Bison defensive lineman David Onyemata makes history as first Manitoba Bisons football player selected in NFL Draft by New Orleans Saints in the 4th round (120th overall pick) in the 2016 NFL Draft", Manitoba Bisons, April 30, 2016.
  6. Dabe, Christopher (May 11, 2016). "CFL team selects Saints defensive lineman David Onyemata in draft". nola.com. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
  7. Bergman, Jeremy (June 28, 2019). "Saints DT David Onyemata suspended one game". NFL.com.
  8. Triplett, Mike (March 16, 2020). "Saints to re-sign DT David Onyemata on 3-year, $27M deal, source says". ESPN.com.
  9. "New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay Buccaneers - November 8th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  10. Patra, Kevin (July 16, 2021). "Saints DT David Onyemata suspended six games for violation of PED policy". NFL.com.
  11. McElhaney, Tori (March 16, 2023). "Falcons sign defensive tackle David Onyemata". AtlantaFalcons.com.
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