Atonio Mafi Bio
Atonio Mafi (born October 20, 2000) is an American professional football guard for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). Standing 6 feet 3 inches tall and weighing around 340 pounds, Mafi plays on the offensive line after beginning his college career on defense. He played college football for the UCLA Bruins and was selected in the fifth round (144th overall) of the 2023 NFL draft by the New England Patriots.
Of Tongan descent, Mafi grew up in the Bay Area and developed his athletic foundation playing rugby before transitioning to organized football in high school. After working his way through multiple NFL stops in his first two professional seasons, he joined the Las Vegas Raiders in 2025 and is part of the team’s interior offensive line.
Early Life and Background
Atonio Mafi was born on October 20, 2000, in San Mateo, California, and is of Tongan descent. He grew up playing rugby, a sport with a strong cultural presence in the Tongan community, which helped him develop the physical toughness and contact skills that would later translate to American football. The switch from rugby to football came during his teenage years, opening the door to a new athletic path.
He attended Junípero Serra High School in San Mateo, California, where he played on both sides of the football. Ranked as a three-star prospect and a top-130 player in California by ESPN, Mafi earned Central Coast Section Co-Offensive Player of the Year honors, was named West Catholic Athletic League Most Valuable Player, and received first-team All-CIF recognition. Serra’s coaching staff valued his combination of size and movement skills, and he became one of the most recruited interior players in Northern California.
After originally committing to the University of California, Mafi flipped his commitment and signed with UCLA. His late recruitment switch to the Bruins set the stage for a college career that began on the defensive line and ultimately ended on offense, a transition that shaped his professional future.
Path to American Football
Mafi arrived at UCLA as a defensive line recruit, where he was measured at 411 pounds during his first months on campus. The size made him an unusually large true freshman, and he wore an XXXXL jersey with a size 50 waist while carrying roughly 40 percent body fat. Early in his time in Westwood, a typical meal for him included five beef patties with cheese, a double order of fries, and a milkshake, totaling about 3,240 calories and 177 grams of fat.
Coaches told him that he needed to lose weight to have a chance to play, and he trimmed down to about 390 pounds by the start of his first season. The work paid off, as Mafi won a starting nose tackle job as a true freshman and was the only first-year player starting on the defensive line. He appeared in 12 games, starting nine, and recorded 16 tackles.
Over the next several seasons, he continued to reshape his body, slimming to 357 pounds for the 2019 season, when he posted 28 tackles, four tackles for loss, one sack, and one forced fumble across 12 games. After a 2020 season spent in a reserve role on a retooled offensive line, he moved permanently to offense and grew into a starting guard by the end of his UCLA career.
Atonio Mafi Career
College Career (2018–2022)
Mafi played five seasons at UCLA, appearing in 56 games, a total that tied the school record at the time of his departure. He spent his first two seasons as a defensive lineman before shifting to the offensive side of the ball in 2020. The transition required him to learn a new position group, different footwork, and an entirely new set of responsibilities in pass protection and the run game.
By his senior season in 2022, Mafi had slimmed down to 340 pounds after another concerted weight-loss plan and started all 13 games at guard. His performance that year earned him second-team All-Pac-12 recognition, the highest individual conference honor of his college career. He closed his UCLA tenure having started games on both sides of the line, an unusual versatility that increased his professional appeal.
New England Patriots (2023–2024)
Heading into the 2023 NFL draft, Mafi was projected as a fourth-to-sixth round pick, and the New England Patriots selected him in the fifth round with the 144th overall pick. He spent his rookie season with the Patriots working primarily as an interior offensive lineman, learning the team’s system and adjusting to the speed of the professional game. Prior to the draft, the Los Angeles Times had published a weekly diary written by Mafi, offering a public look at his pre-professional routine.
On August 27, 2024, Mafi was waived by the Patriots as part of final roster cuts. His release ended a two-year stretch in New England that included offseason programs, training camp competitions, and limited regular-season action.
Indianapolis Colts (2024–2025)
Shortly after his release from New England, Mafi signed with the Indianapolis Colts practice squad on August 29, 2024. He was promoted to the active roster on November 30, giving him a brief window of regular-season game days with the Colts. He was waived on December 23 and returned to the practice squad before signing a reserve and future contract with Indianapolis on January 6, 2025.
Mafi’s time with the Colts ended on May 9, 2025, when he was waived. Across his Indianapolis stint, he split time between the practice squad and the active roster, continuing to develop the consistency and technique required of a reliable NFL guard.
Las Vegas Raiders (2025–Present)
On July 22, 2025, Mafi signed with the Las Vegas Raiders as he looked to secure a stable spot on an NFL offensive line. He was waived on August 26 as part of the team’s final roster cuts and was re-signed to the practice squad the following day. After several weeks on the developmental roster, the Raiders signed him to the active roster on November 17, marking a return to a 53-man lineup.
Notable Events and Milestones
Among Mafi’s most notable milestones is tying the UCLA record with 56 games played across his five college seasons, an unusual mark of durability for a player who began his career on defense at more than 400 pounds. His second-team All-Pac-12 selection in 2022 stands as his top individual college honor, and his fifth-round selection in the 2023 NFL draft validated his multi-year body transformation. In the NFL, the most significant development came in 2025, when he navigated three different organizations inside a single calendar year before landing on the Las Vegas Raiders’ active roster.
Atonio Mafi Career Wins
Collegiate and Professional Highlights
Mafi’s primary verifiable achievements center on his college tenure at UCLA. He earned second-team All-Pac-12 honors in 2022, started all 13 games that season, and tied the school record with 56 games played across his five-year career. In the NFL, he has not yet posted a stat line that includes a Pro Bowl selection or major postseason honor, as his professional career has been spent primarily on practice squads and reserve roles.
Other Performances
In high school, Mafi was named Central Coast Section Co-Offensive Player of the Year, WCAL Most Valuable Player, and first-team All-CIF, while also being ranked as a top-130 player in California. These prep honors helped him earn a late flip to UCLA, where his development arc, more than any single trophy, defined his early résumé.
Atonio Mafi Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
Mafi is of Tongan descent, a heritage that shaped much of his early athletic life. He grew up playing rugby, a sport deeply rooted in Tongan and broader Pacific Islander culture, before switching to American football in his teenage years. Specific public details about his parents and extended family are limited, and the available information focuses primarily on his cultural background and upbringing in San Mateo, California.
Personal Life
Public information about Mafi’s personal life, including marital status, spouse, and children, is not widely reported. He maintains a public presence on Instagram under the handle 56mafiaa, where he shares updates related to his training and NFL career. His journey from a 411-pound true freshman at UCLA to an NFL guard is frequently cited as one of the most striking body transformations among active offensive linemen.
2025 Season Performance
The 2025 season has been a year of transition for Atonio Mafi. After signing a reserve and future contract with the Indianapolis Colts in January, he was waived in May and joined the Las Vegas Raiders in late July. He spent the opening stretch of the season on the Raiders’ practice squad before being promoted to the active roster in mid-November.
His path through three organizations inside a single calendar year highlights both the volatility of bottom-of-roster offensive linemen and Mafi’s persistence. Once on the Raiders’ active roster, he added interior depth to a Las Vegas offensive line in the second half of the season.
Looking ahead, Mafi’s focus is on establishing himself as a consistent interior presence and earning a longer-term role with the Raiders. With his college track record of durability, 56 games of experience at UCLA, and a body composition that is finally aligned with the demands of the position, he has a clear path toward carving out a stable NFL career.