Talanoa Hufanga (Tongan: [ˌtalaˈnoa huˈfaŋa] TA-luh-noh-uh hoo-FAHNG-ə; born February 1, 2000) is an American professional football strong safety for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans and was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL draft.
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Early life
Hufanga attended Crescent Valley High School in Corvallis, Oregon. He played safety, wide receiver, and quarterback. As a senior in 2017, Hufanga was the Polynesian High School National Player of the Year. He played in the 2018 U.S. Army All-American Game. Hufanga committed to the University of Southern California (USC) to play college football.
College career
As a true freshman at USC in 2018, Hufanga played in eight games with five starts before suffering a season-ending broken collarbone. He finished the season with 51 tackles.
As a sophomore in 2019, Hufanga started all 10 games he played in and recorded 90 tackles and 3.5 sacks.
As a junior in 2020, Hufanga returned to USC as a starter. He and BYU quarterback Zach Wilson were selected as co-recipients of the 2020 Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award. For the 2020 season, Hufanga was a Consensus All-American. He also won Pac-12 Conference Defensive Player of the Year.
Professional career
Pre-draft
NFL.com lead analyst Lance Zierlein projected Hufanga to be selected in the fourth or fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Bleacher Report had him ranked as the 12th best safety prospect and projected him to be selected in the fourth round. Dane Brugler of the Athletic had Hufanga ranked as the eighth best safety prospect. Scouts Inc. had him as the 20th best safety in their big board (212th overall).
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers selected Hufanga in the fifth round (180th overall) of the 2021 NFL draft. He was the 14th safety drafted in 2021. On May 13, 2021, the 49ers signed Hufanga to a four-year, $3.72 million rookie contract that includes an initial signing bonus of $240,152.
Throughout training camp, Hufanga competed to be the starting strong safety against Tavon Wilson, Tarvarius Moore, and Jaquiski Tartt. Head coach Kyle Shanahan named Hufanga the No. 2 strong safety on the depth chart to begin the season.
Hufanga made his professional regular season debut during the season-opening 41–33 road victory over the Detroit Lions, but saw limited snaps on defense and special teams. During Week 8 against the Chicago Bears, Hufanga earned his first career start in place of Jaquiski Tartt, who was placed on injured reserve. Hufanga finished the 33–22 road victory with a season-high five combined tackles (four solo). Two weeks later against the Los Angeles Rams on Monday Night Football, Hufanga recorded three solo tackles and a pass deflection in the 31–10 victory.
During a Week 12 34–26 victory over the Minnesota Vikings, Hufanga had two solo tackles and a pass deflection. Two weeks later against the Cincinnati Bengals, he tied his season-high of five combined tackles (four solo) in the 26–23 overtime road victory. Hufanga was inactive for two games (Weeks 16–17) due to a knee injury.
Hufanga finished his rookie year with 32 combined tackles (24 solo) and two pass deflections in 15 games and three starts. He received an overall grade of 62.5 from Pro Football Focus as a rookie. The 49ers finished third in the NFC West with a 10–7 record and qualified for the playoffs as the #6-seed. In the Divisional Round against the Green Bay Packers, Hufanga made his postseason debut and scored his first NFL touchdown after returning a punt that was blocked by defensive lineman Jordan Willis during the fourth quarter of the 13–10 road victory.
During training camp, Hufanga competed to be a starting safety against Tayler Hawkins, Leon O'Neal Jr., and George Odum. Head coach Kyle Shanahan named him the starting strong safety to begin the season alongside Tashaun Gipson.
Denver Broncos
On March 10, 2025, the Denver Broncos signed Hufanga to a three-year, $45 million contract with $20 million guaranteed.
Hufanga made his Broncos debut in the season-opener against the Tennessee Titans and finished the 20–12 victory with a team-high 11 combined tackles (seven solo) and a forced fumble. In the next game against the Indianapolis Colts, Hufanga had 10 combined tackles (five solo) during the narrow 29–28 road loss. The following week against the Chargers, he recorded six tackles (four solo) and two pass deflections in the 23–20 road loss.
During a Week 5 21–17 comeback road victory over the reigning Super Bowl-champion Eagles, Hufanga had a team-high seven combined tackles (four solo) and a pass deflection. In the next game against the New York Jets in London, he recorded five combined tackles (four solo), a pass deflection, and his first sack of the season on Justin Fields during the narrow 13–11 victory. The following week against the Giants, Hufanga had five combined tackles (four solo) and two pass deflections in the narrow 33–32 comeback victory.
During Week 9 against the Texans, Hufanga recorded nine combined tackles (five solo) and two pass deflections in the 18–15 road victory. In the next game against the Las Vegas Raiders on Thursday Night Football, he had a team-high nine combined tackles (five solo) and his second sack of the season on Geno Smith during the 10–7 victory. The following week against the Chiefs, Hufanga recorded six combined tackles (three solo) and a pass deflection in the 22–19 victory.
Following a Week 12 bye, the Broncos went on the road to face the Commanders. Hufanga finished the narrow 27–26 overtime victory with a season-high 13 combined tackles (10 solo) and a pass deflection. Three weeks later against the Jaguars, he had four combined tackles (three solo) and a pass deflection in the 34–20 loss.
Hufanga finished the 2025 season with a career-high 106 combined tackles (67 solo), 11 pass deflections, two sacks, and a forced fumble in 17 games and starts. The Broncos finished atop the AFC West with a 14–3 record and qualified for the playoffs as the #1-seed. In the Divisional Round against the Buffalo Bills, Hufanga recorded 10 combined tackles (seven solo) and a fumble recovery during the 33–30 overtime victory. During the AFC Championship Game against the Patriots, he had seven combined tackles (four solo) and two pass deflections in the 10–7 loss.
Career statistics
Personal life
Hufanga is of Tongan descent. He is the son of Tevita and Tanya Hufanga and has a brother named TJ. Hufanga also trains with Hall of Fame safety Troy Polamalu.
Hufanga is the cousin of New York Giants defensive tackle Marlon Tuipulotu and Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Tuli Tuipulotu.
Hufanga is a Christian.