Falcons’ Tuioti-Mariner named NFC Defensive Player of the Week

Falcons defensive end Jacob Tuioti-Mariner was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week, the NFL announced Thursday.

In Week 12, Tuioti-Mariner recorded a career-high five total tackles (three solo), one sack, one forced fumble, two fumble recoveries and one special-teams tackle in the Falcons’ 43-6 win over the Raiders on Sunday.

Tuioti-Mariner, the second-year player out of UCLA, joined the Buccaneers’ Lavonte David and the Ravens’ Patrick Queen as the only players with at least one sack, one forced fumble and two fumble recoveries in a single game since 2015. He became the first Falcons player to reach those marks in a game since 2000.

It is the first Player of the Week award for Tuioti-Mariner. He is the third Player of the Week for the Falcons this season, joining Matt Ryan as NFC Offensive Player of the Week in Week 6 and Foye Oluokun as NFC Defensive Player of the Week in Week 9.

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