Kana'i Mauga
No. 43 – Las Vegas Raiders
Position:Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (2000-01-08) January 8, 2000
Waianae, Hawaii, U.S.
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:245 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High school:Waianae (HI)
College:USC (2018–2021)
Undrafted:2022
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status:Active
Career NFL statistics as of Week 11, 2023
Tackles:3
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Kana'i Mauga (born January 8, 2000) is an American football linebacker for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans and was signed by the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free agent in 2022.

Early life

Mauga was born on January 8, 2000, in Waianae, Hawaii.[1] He attended Waianae High School and after being named third-team all-state as a junior he was the Hawaii Defensive Player of the Year in 2017 while totaling 52.5 tackles and three defensive touchdowns.[2][3][4] Ranked a four-star prospect and the best outside linebacker in the state, Mauga committed to play college football for the USC Trojans.[5]

College career

As a true freshman at USC in 2018, Mauga appeared in all 12 games and posted 14 tackles with two pass breakups.[6] He saw his first time as a starter in 2019, posting in his first start 13 tackles, a sack, an interception and a forced fumble.[7] He finished the year with eight starts and compiled 59 tackles, seven TFLs, three sacks and two pass breakups.[6] He tallied 41 tackles, three TFLs, a sack and an interception in the COVID-19-impacted 2020 season.[6] In his final year, Mauga played 12 games and finished with 91 tackles, 5.5 TFLs, a sack and an interception.[8] He declared for the National Football League Draft after the 2021 season, ending his stint at USC with 206 tackles, six pass breakups, five sacks and three interceptions.[9]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
6 ft 0+3⁄4 in
(1.85 m)		 245 lb
(111 kg)		 33+1⁄4 in
(0.84 m)		 9+3⁄4 in
(0.25 m)		4.67 s1.67 s2.67 s4.40 s7.27 s32.0 in
(0.81 m)		9 ft 7 in
(2.92 m)		21 reps
All values from Pro Day[10]

Denver Broncos

After going unselected in the 2022 NFL Draft, Mauga was signed by the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free agent.[11] He was waived on August 30 and subsequently re-signed to the practice squad.[12][13] He was released from the practice squad on November 1.[14]

Las Vegas Raiders

On December 13, 2022, Mauga was signed to the practice squad of the Las Vegas Raiders.[15] He was signed to a reserve/future contract on January 9, 2023.[16] He was released on August 1, but later re-signed on August 12.[17][18] He was released at the final roster cuts in 2023 and subsequently re-signed to the practice squad.[19][20] He was signed to the active roster on September 30 and later made his NFL debut in the team's Week 4 game against the Los Angeles Chargers, becoming the third alumni of his high school to ever make it to the NFL.[21][22] He was placed on injured reserve on October 30, and activated on December 9, but placed back on IR three days later with a knee injury.[23]

References

  1. ↑ "Kana'i Mauga Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  2. ↑ "Kana'i Mauga". USC Trojans.
  3. ↑ Hooda, Paul (December 17, 2017). "Best In Show". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. p. C1 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  4. ↑ Hooda, Paul (November 7, 2017). "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. p. C5 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  5. ↑ Chiari, Mike (June 24, 2017). "4-Star LB Prospect Kana'i Mauga Commits to USC Trojans". Bleacher Report.
  6. 1 2 3 Cummings, Ian (August 1, 2021). "Kana'i Mauga, USC LB | NFL Draft Scouting Report". Pro Football Network.
  7. ↑ Hull, Billy (October 23, 2019). "Mauga Starts Something Special". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. p. C5 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  8. ↑ "Kana'i Mauga College Stats". Sports Reference.
  9. ↑ Pattison, Claudette Montana (December 22, 2021). "USC Linebacker Kana'i Mauga Declares For 2022 NFL Draft". Sports Illustrated.
  10. ↑ "2022 NFL Draft Scout Kana'i Mauga College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  11. ↑ Wadleigh, Matt (May 2, 2022). "Kana'i Mauga joins the Broncos, gets a chance to prove himself in the pros". USA Today.
  12. ↑ DiLalla, Aric (August 30, 2022). "Broncos make series of roster moves to reach 53-player limit". Denver Broncos.
  13. ↑ Newman, Kyle (August 31, 2022). "Broncos receiver Tyrie Cleveland returns to practice after "freak hit" to throat". The Denver Post.
  14. ↑ DiLalla, Aric (November 1, 2022). "Broncos waive RB Devine Ozigbo, sign LB Zach McCloud to practice squad". Denver Broncos.
  15. ↑ Carpenter, Hondo S., Sr. (December 14, 2022). "Good News From Raiders Practice, Roster Additions". Sports Illustrated.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  16. ↑ "Raiders sign 13 players to Reserve/Future contracts". Las Vegas Raiders. January 9, 2023.
  17. ↑ Champion, Aidan (August 1, 2023). "Raiders Waive TE O.J. Howard as Part of Five Roster Moves". Sports Illustrated.
  18. ↑ Carpenter, Hondo S., Sr. (August 12, 2023). "Raiders Ziegler Roster Moves: Signs Two, Cuts Two". Sports Illustrated.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  19. ↑ Galaviz, Anthony (August 30, 2023). "Who did the Raiders cut to get to the initial 53-man roster? There was a surprise". The Fresno Bee.
  20. ↑ Champion, Aidan (August 30, 2023). "Raiders Sign 14 Players to their Practice Squad". Sports Illustrated.
  21. ↑ Shimabuku, Christian (September 30, 2023). "Waianae's Kana'i Mauga added to Raiders active roster". KHON-TV.
  22. ↑ Shimbabuku, Christian (October 1, 2023). "NFL Hawaii Tracker Week 4: Waianae's Kana'i Mauga makes NFL regular season debut". KHON-TV.
  23. ↑ "Raiders activate LB Curtis Bolton, place LB Kana'i Mauga on injured reserve". Raiders.com. October 30, 2023.
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