Background and career
Etuini Haloti Ngata (Tongan pronunciation: [ˈŋata]; born January 21, 1984) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) for thirteen seasons. He played college football for the Oregon Ducks, earning consensus All-American honors. Ngata was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round of the 2006 NFL draft, and was voted to the Pro Bowl five times. Ngata played for the Ravens for nine seasons before being traded to the Detroit Lions before the 2015 NFL season. Ngata was also a member of the Philadelphia Eagles for one season in 2018 before retiring. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2025.
Ngata, of Tongan ancestry, was born in Inglewood, California. He attended Highland High School, where he played on the football team in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was a three-year starter on the defensive line. As a senior, he recorded over 200 tackles and led his team to the state quarterfinals, following a 12–2 record and a berth in the State Championship as a junior. Ngata was named the 2001 Utah Gatorade Player of the Year and a first-team USA Today All-USA selection. He played in the 2002 U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Ngata was listed as a five-star recruit and the No. 2 overall prospect in the nation by Rivals.com. He chose Oregon over BYU, Nebraska, Texas A&M, and Washington. Ngata also played rugby in high school, and helped lead the Highland Rugby Club to the National Rugby Championship. He was red carded in the championship match.
A devout member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Ngata said he felt most at home at Brigham Young University, but struggled to make his college decision. He eventually signed a national letter of intent to play for the Oregon Ducks football team of the University of Oregon. Ngata tore his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) on a punt coverage play in 2003 and missed the rest of that season. But over the next two seasons, Ngata became one of the best players in college football. Ngata totaled 107 tackles, 17.5 tackles for a loss, and 6.5 sacks total in the 2004 and 2005 seasons. He was a second-team All-Pac-10 selection in 2004, a first-team All-Pac-10 selection in 2005. Following his junior season in 2005, he was recognized as the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year and a consensus first-team All-American, Oregon's first in 43 years. Ngata also earned praise as a dangerous special teams player, blocking seven kicks during his three-year career at Oregon. He had a 495 lb (225 kg) bench press max, which ranks second all-time among Oregon Ducks football players, behind only Igor Olshansky's 505 lb (229 kg).
Ngata decided to leave Oregon a year early because his mother, 'Ofa, was in the early stages of kidney dialysis. She died from her illness on January 13, 2006.
Ngata was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round with the 12th overall pick in the 2006 NFL draft. It was the first time in franchise history the Ravens used a first round pick on a defensive lineman. Ngata became the highest selected defensive lineman from the old Pac-12 conference since Andre Carter in 2001. On July 28, 2006, Ngata ended a brief contract holdout by agreeing to a 5-year contract worth up to $14 million with the Baltimore Ravens. In his first game in Week 1 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he returned an interception 60 yards to the Tampa Bay 9 yard-line which led to a field goal in a 27–0 win. In a Week 16 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, he recorded his first career sack in the second quarter on a 3-yard sack of Ben Roethlisberger in a 31–7 win. In his rookie season, he started in all 16 games and finished the campaign with 31 tackles, one sack, and an interception. The following season, he made 63 tackles and three sacks.
In the 2008 season, Ngata started all 16 regular season and three postseason games. He led the Ravens defensive line with 77 total tackles (43 solo, 34 assist), one sack, a career-high two interceptions, and five passes deflected as part of the NFL's #2 passing defense. He was named to the Pro Bowl as a first alternate and earned Second-team All-Pro honors by the Associated Press for the first time in his career.
