Latest news with #Hufanga
USA Today
a day ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Broncos roster: S Talanoa Hufanga (No. 9) improves already-stout defense
Broncos Wire's 90-man offseason roster series continues today with a look at fifth-year safety Talanoa Hufanga, No. 9. Before the Broncos: Hufanga was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round (180th overall) of the 2021 NFL draft, and he was thrust into action almost immediately. Hufanga saw action in 15 of 17 games in 2021, starting three games, recording 32 tackles (24 solo, eight assisted), one tackle for loss and one QB hit. Hufanga's best season as a pro came in 2022 when he started 17 games, earning a Pro Bowl selection and a first-team All-Pro nod after netting four interceptions (including one returned for a touchdown), two forced fumbles, nine pass deflections, two sacks, 97 total tackles (66 solo, 31 assisted) and five tackles for losses. In 2023 and 2024, Hufanga had his seasons cut short due to injury, although he managed to put together some strong stats in 2023. Before tearing his ACL in Week 11 of 2023, Hufanga collected three interceptions, three pass deflections, 52 total tackles (39 solo, 13 assisted), one tackle for loss and two QB hits. In 2024, Hufanga only started seven games, making 38 total tackles (20 solo, 18 assisted) and two tackles for loss before suffering various injuries that sidelined him on injured reserve. Broncos tenure: Hufanga departed the 49ers as an unrestricted free agent this spring, signing with the Broncos on a three-year deal worth up to $45 million. He is projected to start across from Brandon Jones in 2025. Chance to make the 53-man roster: Lock. The Broncos would not have brought in Hufanga, even with his injury-riddled history, if he were not going to be a starter. Hufanga will be a vital piece in a Denver defense that was near the top of the league in every defensive statistical category last year. Hufanga and fellow free agent signee Dre Greenlaw will help Denver's defense reach another level in 2025. Related: These 25 celebrities are Broncos fans.
USA Today
6 days ago
- Business
- USA Today
Now healthy, Talanoa Hufanga eyes Super Bowl with Broncos
Now healthy, Talanoa Hufanga eyes Super Bowl with Broncos The Denver Broncos signed veteran safety Talanoa Hufanga to a three-year, $39 million contract this spring. That could turn out to be a bargain deal for the Broncos -- if they can keep Hufanga on the field. Hufanga battled through a wrist injury last season, and he tore his ACL two years ago. The 25-year-old safety has missed 17 games over the last two seasons. 'Injury is part of the game," Hufanga said at the start of organized team activities last week. "Troy Polamalu always told me, 'It's a 100 percent injury rate regardless.' For you to go in, you have to understand what comes with it. So every injury that I've came along, I think it's just a testament to who I am and to battle through adversity through those moments. [It is] something that I've taken in and wear on my sleeve when I go out on the field.' Now healthy, Hufanga will look to bounce back with a fresh start in Denver. He will be joining Vance Joseph's defense which ranked among the NFL's best in 2024. "I just want to go out there and celebrate with the guys," Hufanga said. "When we can make plays together — if I can help a guy get an interception, that's my goal." In four seasons with the 49ers, Hufanga reached three NFC Championship games and one Super Bowl. Entering his fifth year in the NFL, Hufanga now aims to get over the hump and win a title with the Broncos. "I want to be out there to help guys get accolades and help as a team get the biggest accolade of all, and that's being a Super Bowl champion," he said. "We have to go out there and strive to be that every day.' Related: These 25 celebrities are Broncos fans.
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Broncos' Free Agent Signing Draws Comparison to Steve Atwater
Broncos' Free Agent Signing Draws Comparison to Steve Atwater originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Strong secondary play has been key to the Denver Broncos' success in recent seasons. With players like Patrick Surtain II and Brandon Jones currently on its roster, as well as Justin Simmons and Aqib Talib previously donning orange and blue jerseys, the Broncos have possessed a number of marquee names in its secondary. Advertisement This past offseason, the Broncos added another player in the upper echelon of NFL defensive backs in Talanoa Hufanga, who signed a three-year, $39 million contract with team in March. Even though he has yet to appear in a regular season game with the Broncos, Hufanga – and his explosive playing style – has received praise from one of the team's all-time greats: Steve Atwater, who has two Super Bowl rings, two First-Team All-Pro honors and a Pro Football Hall of fame bust to his name. 'I see it and I love it,' Atwater told The Denver Post's Troy Renck. 'You can't worry about what might happen when you are trying to make the tackle. You just have to do it. (Hufanga) absolutely brings it.' Hufanga is looking for a fresh start in Denver after injury-riddled seasons in his final two years with the San Francisco 49ers. He suffered a season-ending ACL tear during Week 11 of the 2023 campaign and was placed on injured reserve after suffering an injury to his wrist in 2024. San Francisco 49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga (29) before the game against the Arizona Cardinals at Levi's Yamashita-Imagn Images Despite appearing in just 17 games over the past two years, Hufanga remained a productive presence in the 49ers' secondary when healthy. He made 90 tackles (including 59 solo stops), caught three interceptions and defended three passes during that time frame. Advertisement Hufanga, a fifth-round NFL Draft pick by the 49ers in 2021, has appeared in 49 career games and picked up three major honors during the 2022 season. In addition to being a First-Team All-Pro and a Pro Bowl selection, he was named the Polynesian Professional Football Player of the Year by the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame. Related: Broncos Get Bad News On Potential Running Back Trade Target This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
30-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Hufanga shares heartfelt goodbye to 49ers organization, fans
Hufanga shares heartfelt goodbye to 49ers organization, fans originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area Now that Talanoa Hufanga's time with the 49ers officially is over, the safety is saying goodbye. Hufanga signed a three-year contract with the Denver Broncos in NFL free agency earlier this month, ending his tenure in the Bay after four seasons. A first-team All-Pro selection in 2022, Hufanga found plenty of success with the 49ers after they selected him No. 180 overall in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Advertisement 'Change is exciting, but this is a season of my life I will always cherish and reminisce as one of the best times of my life,' Hufanga said Saturday on Instagram of his years in the Bay. 'Thank you to all the teammates and coaches that not only helped me grow as a football player, but as a man of God. You all have become family to me and I'll never forget the relationships I have been fortunate enough to make. 'To [the] Faithful, thank you all so much for your endless support and encouragement these past four years. I loved seeing you all on Sundays but my favorite was when I was able to meet some of you in everyday life. Our interactions never ceased to put a smile on my face and I feel so grateful to have encountered such great people. 'Red and gold will always have a special place in my heart. Stay faithful.' Hufanga experienced plenty of highs and lows during his 49ers career, from his playoff touchdown on a blocked punt against the Green Bay Packers his rookie year to ACL and wrist injuries that impacted his third and fourth seasons in the league. Advertisement It's safe to say Hufanga, whom the Faithful knew as 'Huf,' made an impact for both the organization and fans alike, appearing in five postseason contests — two NFC Championship Games — with the 49ers. And now, as Hufanga joins former 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw for a new adventure in Denver, the place where he made his mark in the NFL always will be in his heart. Download and follow the 49ers Talk Podcast
The Guardian
18-03-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
The 49ers have been a model of success. So why are they putting on a fire sale?
As unpalatable as it may be to fans, there are times when NFL teams must rejig their roster to cast off contracts which could get in the way of future success. The San Francisco 49ers, who have appeared in four of the last six NFC Championship games, and two of the last six Super Bowls, appear to be doing exactly that. While most other teams were trying to make themselves better in free agency when the league year began last week, the 49ers were having quite the fire sale. They had already traded receiver Deebo Samuel to the Washington Commanders for a future fifth-round pick, but that was just the beginning. In free agency, general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan watched calmly as the following starters walked out the door: fullback Kyle Juszczyk, offensive guard Aaron Banks, edge-rusher Leonard Floyd, linebacker Dre Greenlaw, cornerback Charvarius Ward, and safety Talanoa Hufanga. The team turned around and re-signed Juszczyk, a nine-time Pro Bowler, to an easily escapable two-year, $8m contract. But everyone else on the list was gone, and the team also lost important role-players like offensive tackle Jaylon Moore and defensive tackle Maliek Collins. The 49ers also traded running back Jordan Mason, who performed quite admirably during Christian McCaffrey's absence through injury last season, to the Minnesota Vikings for a sixth-round draft pick in 2026. There were no incoming saviors, as the 49ers were spending very little in this free agency cycle – no surprise there. Former Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Luke Farrell, journeyman receiver Demarcus Robinson, and former New England Patriots quarterback bust Mac Jones were the primary names, and none of those guys project as franchise-definers. Why did this drastic remodel happen? Why did a team that finished 6-11 in 2024 after all those recent successes seem to throw 2025 in the tank too? First, there's the fact that a lot of the castoffs were injured in 2024. Greenlaw played in just two games last season as he recovered from the torn achilles tendon he suffered in San Francisco's Super Bowl LVIII loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. Hufanga (who signed with the Denver Broncos alongside Greenlaw) was limited to seven games, and Ward played just 12 games last season, as he was affected not only by knee and hamstring injuries, but also by the death of his one-year-old daughter Amani Joy last October. Ward understandably wanted a change of scenery, and both Greenlaw and Hufanga were going to get more money in the Mile High City. And Samuel's highly physical style means 2021 is the only time he has played a full season. And the Lynch/Shanahan duo has done this kind of thing before. The 49ers finished the 2020 season with a 6-10 record after putting a league-high 18 different players on injured reserve. In the 2021 free agency space, San Francisco jettisoned a ton of players, and outside of the six-year, $138m contract given to future Hall of Fame left tackle Trent Williams, there was little of starting consequence when it came to additions. A much healthier 49ers team finished 10-7 in 2021, and narrowly lost to the eventual Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship game. There's also the matter of Brock Purdy's impending second contract. The quarterback, as you may have been reminded a few dozen times, was the last pick in the 2022 draft but has defied all expectations to become a solid NFL starter. 2025 marks the final year of Purdy's cheap rookie contract, and at some point in the near future, the 49ers will have to re-sign Purdy at a rate that will probably exceed $35-40m per year in overall dollars, and the kind of guaranteed money that will affect the team's salary cap greatly, no matter how it's structured. In late February at the scouting combine, Lynch explained why the teardown was coming. 'I think since Kyle and I have been here, we've certainly been a top-five … I believe, the No 2 cash-spending team,' Lynch said. 'In the last four years going into the fifth year, I think we're the fourth-highest cash-spending team. At some point, you have to reset a little bit, or at least recalibrate. You can't just keep pressing the pedal. I think there is some good that can come out of it. We need to get younger.' This, by the way, was a response to a reporter's question about the possibility of trading Brandon Aiyuk – the team's best remaining wide receiver – who signed a four-year, $120m contract extension with $45m guaranteed just last year. Aiyuk also missed 10 games in 2024 with a torn ACL and MCL in his right knee. 'That typically happens with really good players,' Lynch said regarding the Aiyuk situation. 'I remember two years ago, having similar conversations. You get calls, and you always listen to calls.' The 49ers will unquestionably get younger, but will they get better as they did in 2021? Pushing all that cash out the window in the short term leaves the franchise with no room to move – they have $86m in dead cap money in 2025 and $21.5m in 2026. Next year isn't that much more expansive, because it's pretty expensive. Per with those dead salary cap liabilities in 2026, the 49ers will have nearly $65m in available cash to spend – but remember, this is before whatever contract Purdy receives factors in. They'll also have large salary cap liabilities with Williams at age 37, McCaffrey at age 29, Aiyuk at age 28, George Kittle at age 32, Fred Warner at age 29 and Nick Bosa at age 28. That's not to say that any or all of those players will be gasping for air in a professional sense, but nobody's getting any younger here. At least the Trey Lance albatross is out of the building, as well. In 2021, the 49ers traded their first-round picks in 2021, 2022, and 2023, and a 2022 third-round pick to the Miami Dolphins to move up from 12th to third in the draft so that they could select Lance, the North Dakota State quarterback. Lance did nothing of note for San Francisco, and after a short stint as Dak Prescott's backup with the Dallas Cowboys, he is a free agent. The 49ers' drafts in those three seasons from 2021 to 2023 didn't do a lot to reinforce the roster, which is in part why the franchise is where it is now. So, this may be a longer rebuild than either Lynch or Shanahan has experienced before, and both men have been running the team since 2017. Owners' and fans' patience is short in the NFL, and Lynch and Shanahan made mistakes along the way. This iteration of the 49ers is running out of road, and it's time to build a new highway.
