SANTA CLARA — Sam Okuayinonu had the game of his NFL career Sunday, but when given an opportunity to soak in the spotlight, the veteran defensive lineman immediately highlighted his teammates’ efforts rather than bask in the glory of his outstanding individual performance.
“It feels good, man. It feels good,” Okuayinonu told NBC Sports Bay Area after the 49ers’ 30-13 win over the New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium. “I don’t just feel good with myself, I feel good about the whole D-line. I love how we came out there to play. I feel like we were thrashing, flying around having fun. Seeing guys on the sideline, just excited … it felt great.”
Okuayinonu wasted no time making an impact after being promoted to San Francisco’s active roster over the weekend, forcing a fumble on the first play of New England’s second drive to seize early momentum and set the tone for the 49ers’ defensive-front dominance.
Okuayinonu quickly is earning goodwill among 49ers fans because of his hellacious motor, but San Francisco’s brass long was impressed with the consistent effort the 26-year-old made behind the scenes before his promotion from the practice squad to play in his ninth NFL game.
For Okuayinonu, it doesn’t matter if it’s scout-team work or chasing quarterbacks in front of 70,000 screaming fans — he approaches every play as if it’s his last.
“Man, honestly, when I come to practice — you can ask anybody about Sam O — I come to work,” Okuayinonu said. “Even giving looks on the scout team, on offense they be mad at me, like, ‘slow down,’ but that’s just how I approach the game. I approach every game, every practice, every snap with the mindset of it might be my last, so I try to go as hard as I can. And line up and do it all over again.”
Okuayinonu’s relentless mindset is beyond impressive. It’s inspirational, as is his journey to the NFL, which makes any adversity he faces on the gridiron pale in comparison to the obstacles he has overcome in his life.
“My whole life really has been adversity,” Okuayinonu said earlier at his locker. “I grew up in Liberia, on the west coast of Africa. I was born during the civil war out there. Me and my mom immigrated to America at the age of 12. Started playing football my senior year in high school. Went to a couple junior colleges because I was fresh to the game. I’m very new to football. I’m still learning the game of football. Got to Maryland, had to wait. Even coming out to the league, I felt like I should have been a draft pick. But God had other plans for me.
“Then getting signed to Tennessee, getting cut and being here. Just kind of grinding my way through the rotation. But I love it all, man. Because at the end of the day, it makes a great story, man. I’m the guy who kind of prides himself on facing things head on and just attacking adversity, coming out the other side victorious.”
Okuayinonu’s incredible path now has him firmly in a rotation on the 49ers’ defensive line, a selfless unit that thrives off seeing each other succeed.
San Francisco entered Week 4 with just eight sacks in three games, but it nearly matched that total Sunday with four players combining to bring down New England quarterback Jacoby Brissett six times in Sunday’s win.
Okuayinonu detailed how 49ers defensive linemen feed off each other, and how that energy quickly spreads to the rest of the team on the sideline.
“It’s very contagious, it’s very contagious. All it takes is one person,” Okuayinonu said. “One person makes a play, then everybody is like, ‘What did you do? How did you get that play?’ And then it’s like, ‘I want to get one, too,’ the next guy is like, “I want to get one, too!’ “
San Francisco successfully made New England one dimensional, shutting down the running game and forcing plenty of obvious passing situations that allowed the 49ers’ defensive line to tee off on Brissett.
“When you know for sure they have to pass the ball, man, it’s like, ‘Yeah, I’m going to pin my ears back, fly off the ball, man,’ ” Okuayinonu said. “Just see if I can get this quarterback pressure or sack or whatever it is, man. It feels good. If you can stop a team and make them one dimensional, it feels great.”
While Sunday’s performance was excellent by any measure, Okuayinonu remains confident the 49ers’ defensive line still is nowhere close to hitting its ceiling.
“I feel like we’re just scratching the surface,” Okuayinonu said. “If you see some of the guys in our room and what they can do, man, it’s like, ‘Woah.’ I’m watching these guys in practice every day like, ‘Man, I’m playing with some legends. So, to be in that room with those guys, man. You’re going to see more during the season. We’re just scratching the surface.”
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