Pita Taumoepenu & Yasir Durant Re-Sign UFL Contracts

On Friday, we saw two more UFL players re-sign their contracts for 2025. DE Pita Taumoepenu (St. Louis), and OL Yasir Durant (DC) agreed to terms with their respective teams.

The #UFL has announced the following transactions pic.twitter.com/KXMJOe69Av

— UFL Communications Department (@UFL_PR) October 18, 2024

DE Pita Taumoepenu | St. Louis Battlehawks

Pita Taumoepenu has been one of spring football’s best over the past couple of years. He made his XFL debut in 2023, with the Vegas Vipers. Pita ended up winning Defensive Player of the Year that season; with 26 tackles, eight TFL’s, 7.5 sacks, and four forced fumbles to his name.

Ghost Rush by @PitaTaumoepenu of the @XFLVipers. Feints with the inside hand, then dips under the blocker’s punch. Great execution & body control at the top of the rush. Taumoepenu is one of the best pass rushers in the XFL! #passrush #xfl #xfl2023 pic.twitter.com/b7uLc2HWp7

— DLineVids (@dlinevids1) March 26, 2023

This led to an NFL stint with the Jets. Pita spent some time in New York during the ‘23 preseason, before ultimately being released. With the USFL-XFL merger on the horizon, Pita ultimately made the decision to sign with the St. Louis Battlehawks, bringing tremendous depth and talent to a transformed defensive line.

ANOTHER sack for @PitaTaumoepenu 👏 pic.twitter.com/ax2jjujaJj

— St. Louis Battlehawks (@XFLBattlehawks) April 7, 2024

In the UFL, Pita continued to put up impressive numbers. He posted 20 tackles, five TFL’s, and five sacks as a Battlehawk in 2024, starting every single game this season. Taumoepenu had a solid 74.3 Defensive Grade via PFF, also adding 30 quarterback hurries to his stat sheet.

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