In depth look at Jonah Savaiinaea and Draft Grades/Reactions | Page 2 | FinHeaven - Miami Dolphins Forums

In depth look at Jonah Savaiinaea and Draft Grades/Reactions

Finsup1981 said:
Dane Brugler has him 4th

A three-year starter at Arizona, Savaiinaea was an interchangeable tackle in former offensive coordinator Dino Babers’ pass-heavy spread scheme. Primarily a guard in high school, he was a Freshman All-American guard for the Wildcats before being pushed to tackle the past two seasons. He split his time almost evenly between right tackle (364 snaps) and left tackle (345) in 2024, but he didn’t complain about the shuffling (Savaiinaea: “Wherever my coaches want me, I’ll play there. Whatever the team needs.”).

A physically imposing blocker, Savaiinaea is both alert and powerful, with the competitive demeanor to complete the mission. Though he is a solid athlete, he will struggle versus two-way go rushers and too easily turn his hips and lose positioning in space, opening a path to the quarterback. Overall, Savaiinaea has the length and functional movements to stay at tackle, but his square play style projects best inside at guard, where he can use his bear claws to control the man in front of him. He should compete for starting reps as early as his rookie season.

Round 2

Testing
TYPE HT WT HAND ARM WING 40 20 10 VJ BJ SS 3C BP NOTES
Combine 6041 324 101/4″ 337/8″ 821/4″ 4.95 2.87 1.72 29″ 8′10″ 4.66 DNP DNP No three-cone, bench (choice)
Pro Day 6034 325 103/8″ 34″ 82″ DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP

Strengths
Massive frame with well-proportioned thickness and long arms
Plays balanced in pass sets to square and mirror
Efficient quickness pre- and post-contact and transfers weight well on combos
Large, physical hands to snatch and stun at contact
Runs his feet to create movement in run game (1.72-second 10-yard split was fastest at combine among prospects weighing 315 pounds or more)
Functional pulling range and closes well on targets in space
Plays hard — eyes are always searching for the next block
Flagged only once in 2024 (holding on Kansas State tape)
Didn’t start lifting weights until high school and has learned how to take care of his body
NFL scouts say his swagger helped maintain Arizona’s culture after Jedd Fisch left following 2023 season
Started 36 straight games, spread across three positions

Weaknesses
Struggles to recover once rushers win inside leverage
Stiffness in lower half becomes more noticeable when asked to expand lateral range
Upright with inconsistent knee bend and anchor
Needs to become more consistent replacing hands as pass blocker
Inconsistent hip roll when leveraging in run game
Falls off too many second-level blocks — needs to keep his feet underneath him


Jonah Savaiinaea (Savuh-Nye-A-uh), the second oldest of four children (three boys, one girl), was born and raised in American Samoa with his parents (Joe and Annette). He grew up singing in church and playing multiple instruments, including piano and guitar. Savaiinaea didn’t play football until seventh grade, when his friends convinced him to join the team. It wasn’t love at first sight, but given his size and athleticism, football quickly became his main activity. Savaiinaea convinced his parents to let him attend high school on the mainland, in Hawaii, to get more looks from college football programs. His brother (Julian), who is one year younger, also made the move and is now a rising redshirt sophomore defensive lineman at Arizona.

Savaiinaea moved to Hawaii in 2017 and enrolled at St. Louis High, a Catholic all-boys school in Honolulu that has produced numerous NFL players, including Tua Tagovailoa, Marcus Mariota and Olin Kreutz. After starting at left guard as a freshman, he moved over to right guard as a 365-pound sophomore and helped lead St. Louis to a 12-1 record and the 2019 state championship. It was the school’s fourth straight title, and that team included future FBS players such as quarterback Jayden de Laura and linebacker Nick Herbig. The 2020 football season was canceled in Hawaii, so Savaiinaea only saw action in controlled spring scrimmages. For his senior season, Savaiinaea started at right guard (at 345 pounds) and earned all-state honors in 2021. He also played for a club team called the Trench Dawgz.

A three-star recruit, Savaiinaea was the 27th-ranked interior offensive lineman in the 2022 recruiting class and the No. 3 recruit in Hawaii. After his sophomore season, he received his first scholarship offer from Hawaii, followed by offers from UNLV and Arizona State. With Hawaii native and NFL Hall of Famer Kevin Mawae coaching the offensive line for head coach Herm Edwards’ Arizona State staff, the Sun Devils were an early favorite. However, Mawae left Arizona State after the 2020 season, and Arizona ramped up its recruitment of Savaiinaea in spring of 2021. After taking a visit to Tucson and connecting with former offensive line coach Brennan Carroll, Savaiinaea committed to the Wildcats in June 2021 (it helped that Arizona also offered his younger brother).

He was the eighth-ranked recruit in former head coach Jedd Fisch’s 2022 class (wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan was No. 1). Savaiinaea was recruited as a guard, but he played the majority of his career at Arizona at tackle. He elected to forgo his final season and enter the NFL Draft. Savaiinaea accepted his invitation to the Senior Bowl.
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That is not the correct pronunciation. It is Sava-ee-NYE-uh.
 
MEASUREMENT AND WORKOUT RESULTS

HEIGHT: 6'4"

WEIGHT: 324

HAND: 10¼"

ARM: 33⅞"

WINGSPAN: 82¼"

40-YARD DASH: 4.95

3-CONE: NA

SHUTTLE: 4.66

VERTICAL: 29"

BROAD: 8'10"

— Wide-bodied frame with thick limbs and a barrel chest

— Solid initial burst out of his stance to get to his spots in pass protection and line up targets as a puller

— Delivers a good amount of shock and jolt from his hands on contact to snap rushers' head back and displace/feed defensive tackles over on double-teams.

— Has an effective snatch-trap technique to defeat the long-arm, steal leverage and end reps quickly in pass protection.

— Shows good spatial awareness, timing and feel when uncovered in the pass and run game to know when to man his gap or release to the most dangerous man.

Sidenote: The pronunciation of "Savaiinaea" is typically rendered as sa-vai-inaea. Got it?

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BIG _UCKER!
 
I heard, somewhere, someplace, that the Incognito allegations were just a scam made-up by Jonathan Martin, who had serious funds (didn't need NFL money), in order to have an excuse for leaving. It's any of that true? I forget where/when I heard that news/gossip.
 
Charlie Rivers said:
I heard, somewhere, someplace, that the Incognito allegations were just a scam made-up by Jonathan Martin, who had serious funds (didn't need NFL money), in order to have an excuse for leaving. It's any of that true? I forget where/when I heard that news/gossip.
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Considering his history after "bully gate", that seems far-fetched.
 
Savaiinaea has quick feet and has a tremendous amount of determination to help Miami's offensive line. He wants to prove his worth. I'm hopeful he'll turn into another Robert Hunt type 2nd round success.
 
Charlie Rivers said:
I heard, somewhere, someplace, that the Incognito allegations were just a scam made-up by Jonathan Martin, who had serious funds (didn't need NFL money), in order to have an excuse for leaving. It's any of that true? I forget where/when I heard that news/gossip.
Click to expand...
We could facilitate more fake news stating that Incognito is our new O-line coach.
 
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