Onatolu's special at beating odds

Kenny Onatolu called his identical twin brother, Taiwo, immediately after Kenny signed a free agent contract with the Vikings last December.

Kenny was 26 at the time, had spent two years in the Canadian Football League and was undersized (6-2, 225 pounds) by NFL linebacker standards. The long-shot label applied, but he said he could make something of his first NFL opportunity.

"He said his first goal is to make the team," Taiwo recalled. "Then he said he wanted to be the best special teams player on the team."

Kenny accomplished the first and is pushing hard to achieve the second. Signed primarily to bolster the special-teams units, Onatolu leads the Vikings with 15 special-teams tackles halfway through the season.

"I always wanted to know if I could play in the NFL," he said. "As a football player, everyone always thinks they're good enough. But I wanted to actually get that opportunity. I finally did, and it's a real good feeling to be here."

Onatolu's contributions have helped spark a turnaround in the Vikings' special-teams play after they gave up an NFL-record seven touchdowns last season, including four on punt returns.

The improvement in that phase is the result of many factors and not just one individual, of course. But Onatolu has helped those units elevate their play with his effort, skill and willingness to do the dirty work.

"Kenny has been unbelievable covering kicks," said linebacker and special-teams standout Heath Farwell, who is second with 11 tackles. "He's covering kicks as good as I've ever seen someone cover them. He knew that he was going to make this roster on special teams, and he's working hard at it. He's flying around making plays."

He took a circuitous path to reach this point. Onatolu earned All-America honors at Division II Nebraska-Omaha, but he attracted hardly any buzz among NFL scouts.

"It's real hard coming out of a small school to get looks," he said. "You have to have everything working for you. There were a few teams interested [in him as an undrafted free agent], but I would have probably been one of those guys who was a camp body."

Instead, he signed with the CFL's Edmonton Eskimos in 2007, thinking that might open some doors. But he was primarily a special-teams player the first season. He became a starter at linebacker last season and led the team in tackles in seven of 14 games.

"Coming out of college, I was confident -- maybe kind of arrogant to a point -- thinking I was going to go up there and dominate them," he said. "My goal was to go there for two years at the most and come back. It worked out that I stayed two years, but not the way I thought. But it was a real good experience overall."

The Vikings scouted Onatolu, gave him a tryout and then signed him to a reserve/futures contract last December. He said most of their conversations revolved around special teams.

Onatolu has good speed and doesn't shy away from contact running down the field. He said his experience in the CFL also was beneficial because the field is larger and offenses get one less down.

"It's a lot of running," he said.

Besides the physical skills, the Vikings say Onatolu's effort makes him an effective special-teams player, particularly on the coverage units.

"You just have to have the mentality that I'm going to go make that play," Onatolu said. "If you have the right mentality on special teams, you're going to make plays."

As much pride as he takes in special teams, Onatolu's ultimate goal is to become a starting linebacker at some point in the future. He knows he must continue to improve before he gets that opportunity, but he believes he's on the right track.

"I love special teams and I'll play my part," he said. "You have to know where you fit in. On this team you have three really good linebackers, potentially great linebackers. If special teams is going to help us get to the next level, that's what I'm going to do. Hopefully I can play linebacker [in the future], but right now I'm doing what I have to do to help the team."