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Hawaii alumnus Pisa Tinoisamoa tackled Lions running back Artose Pinner yesterday, one of his 12 tackles in the Rams' loss.
Tinoisamoa leads Rams
in tackles in season finale
Pisa Tinoisamoa ended his regular season with the St. Louis Rams on a positive note.
The former University of Hawaii linebacker, who was named the team's rookie of the year on Friday, not only led the Rams in tackles with 12 (nine solo, one on special teams) during their surprising loss to the Detroit Lions, he also had an interception, forced a fumble and defended a pass.
Several times he came face mask to face mask with Detroit Lions center Dominic Raiola (Saint Louis/Nebraska), who made his 16th consecutive start for the season.
And while Tinoisamoa had an outstanding day, his Rams did not. Had they beaten the struggling Lions, they would have clinched home field throughout the playoffs. Instead, that NFC honor goes to Philadelphia.
Tinoisamoa is not the only NFL player with island ties preparing for the playoffs. So are Seattle tight end Itula Mili (Kahuku/ BYU), Indianapolis offensive tackle Makoa Freitas (Kamehameha/Arizona), Tennessee quarterback Jason Gesser (Saint Louis/Washington State), Baltimore defensive tackle Ma'ake Kemoeatu (Kahuku/Utah) and place-kicker Jason Elam (Hawaii), wide receiver Ashley Lelie (Radford/ Hawaii) and defensive end Mario Fatafehi (Farrington/ Kansas State) of the Broncos.
Denver took it easy in yesterday's loss to playoff-bound Green Bay. The Broncos rested several top players, including quarterback Jake Plummer and tight end Shannon Sharpe. Lelie and Fatafehi started yesterday's season finale at Green Bay.
Lelie had two catches for 13 yards. He also had a couple of passes slip through his hands, much to the frustration of backup quarterback Danny Kanell. Fatafehi had a much more productive game, his best of the season with seven combined tackles. He finished third on the team. Elam also added a 31-yard field goal for Denver's only points.
Three points were huge for the Colts in their last-second victory over Houston. A late field goal sent Indianapolis home on a winning note. The Colts play the Broncos this weekend for the second time in three weeks as the playoffs begin. Freitas didn't start yesterday's game in Houston, but did play and continues to be a talented tackle for the AFC South champions.
Several other offensive linemen with island ties weren't as fortunate. Jacksonville O-line tandem Vince Manuwai (Farrington/Hawaii) and Chris Naeole (Kahuku/Colorado) started once again, but in a losing cause against the Atlanta Falcons and former UH offensive lineman Kynan Forney, who started his 16th game of the season. Jacksonville running back Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala (Saint Louis/Utah) played for the Jaguars, but had no carries.
Chicago Bears center Olin Kreutz (Saint Louis/Washington) started, but was on the losing side of the scoreboard for the ninth time this season as Kansas City blew out the Bears.
Two players with local ties played in the late game -- Baltimore's Kemoeatu and Pittsburgh defensive end Kimo von Oelhoffen (Molokai/Boise State). Kemoeatu played, but did not have any tackles. He did have a pass defended in the Ravens' OT win.
Von Oelhoffen and the Pittsburgh defense made sure that Jamal Lewis did not set the NFL single-season rushing record. He told ESPN analysts before the game that if the defense limited Lewis to only 3.5 yards per rush, it would be difficult for him to set the mark. Lewis finished 40 yards short of breaking Eric Dickerson's record. Von Oelhoffen, who started his 16th game of the season, finished with two tackles.
