Born in Monrovia, Liberia and raised in Massachusetts, Sam Okuayinonu went from undrafted free agent to a productive rotational pass rusher on San Francisco's defensive line.
Sam Okuayinonu's path to the NFL ran through Tennessee's practice squad before he found a home in San Francisco, where he broke out as an interior pass rush threat in 2025. His story is one of steady development rather than draft-day hype.
Path to the league
Okuayinonu was born in Monrovia, Liberia and grew up in Massachusetts, where he attended Lowell High School as a three-star recruit. He played three seasons at Maryland, recording 90 tackles, 12.0 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks, and earned Third-team All-Big Ten honors in 2021. He went undrafted in 2022 and signed with the Tennessee Titans.
Career highlights
After bouncing between Tennessee's practice squad and active roster, Okuayinonu signed with San Francisco's practice squad in January 2024 and earned a promotion to the active roster that September. He re-signed with the 49ers in March 2025 before being tendered as a restricted free agent in 2026.
2025 season recap
Okuayinonu had his best season as a pro in 2025, appearing in 15 regular-season games and posting 39 combined tackles and 3.0 sacks. He added six tackles across two playoff games as San Francisco leaned on him more heavily along the defensive line.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Sam Okuayinonu
- ESPN: Sam Okuayinonu
Statistics
2025 season and career2025 Season · Defense
15 games played▶Defense · career
| Year | Team | GP | TOT | SOLO | SACK | INT | FF | FR | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 49ers | 15 | 39 | 23 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | 49ers | 16 | 35 | 25 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2022 | titans | 6 | 11 | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Defensive Tackle
- Group
- defense
- College
- Maryland
- Hometown
- Lowell, MA, USA
- Age
- 28
- Status
- active
