How Savaiinaea Stole the Show After the Dolphins Win ... But Doesn't Want a Repeat

Miami Dolphins rookie guard Jonah Savaiinaea was a center of attention Sunday

Miami Dolphins rookie Jonah Savaiinaea | Alain Poupart - Miami Dolphins On SI

Jonah Savaiinaea got some nice attention Sunday, first with a nice shout-out from CBS play-by-play Kevin Harlan during the Miami Dolphins’ rout of the Atlanta Falcons and later when his performance of the haka in the victorious postgame locker room made the rounds on social media.

After the fact, Savaiinaea would love nothing more than a repeat of the former, not so much of the latter.

"I lost my voice after doing it,” Savaiinaea said Tuesday. “So I told the guys, let's just pipe down right now. They said, ‘You might have started something. I was like, damn."

Momentum. 💪

Step inside the locker room after our Week 8 win. 🔊 pic.twitter.com/QNRxIOI07G

— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) October 27, 2025

Savaiinaea, who was shown on the Dolphins’ social media account doing the haka after head coach Mike McDaniel said he was giving everybody a game ball after the 34-10 victory at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, explained the idea originated with offensive coordinator Frank Smith.

Savaiinaea first did at a walk-through two days before the game.

"Yeah, I mean, it was great being able to bring that here to the team,” Savaiinaea said. “I learned it back in high school at the Polynesian Bowl. I was chosen to lead it and find a group of guys. So it was a blast.

“OC Frank wanted me to do it. He found out that I could do it. So Friday, walk-through, he walked up to me. He said, are you ready? I said, for what? So I took my shirt off there, and started doing it there. So after the game, when we got that win, we came back. he wanted me to do it again."

Not surprisingly, especially given that the performance came after the Dolphins’ best game of the season, Savaiinaea’s routine was a big hit for his teammates.

Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who like Savaiinaea is Samoan, said Dolphins players loved it and want him to join next time.

For Jaelan Phillips, it was like a trip back in time, as he explained the haka was performed regularly when he played at Redlands East Valley High School in California.

"I mean, I used to do the haka in high school, because I had a lot of Polynesians in my school, so I was a traditional (thing),” Phillips said. “We’d do the haka before and after every game. So it was kind of nostalgic for me, I guess you could say, but it was cool. Yeah, got good energy."

SAVAIINAEA'S SHOUT-OUT

It's overall been a rocky rookie season for Savaiinaea, the Dolphins' second-round pick out of the University of Arizona, but his outing against Atlanta might have been his best of the season.

It earned him his highest grade of the season from PFF, and earned that comment from Harlan pointing out he had made three key blocks for the offense.

"I mean, it felt good, seeing the guys running, taking those for tuddies (touchdowns)," Savaiinaea said. "All I gotta say is gotta build on from that. We got a short week this week. It's all about fundamentals. Now just watch from that game and continue on that."