Tuli Tuipulotu has officially arrived among the NFL’s best. The Los Angeles Chargers outside linebacker checked in at No. 86 on the Top 100 Players of 2026 list, his first appearance on the annual ranking that dropped this week.
The 23-year-old out of USC and Hawthorne, California, turned heads in 2025 with a true breakout campaign. He finished with 13 sacks — good for sixth in the league — along with 20 tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, and 23 quarterback hits. Those numbers, paired with his first Pro Bowl selection, made the nod feel inevitable once the list started rolling out.
The Film Doesn’t Lie
The league’s own account dropped the news with a crisp NFL Films clip that says everything you need to know. In the footage, Tuipulotu is flying around the backfield the way he has all season — violent hands, low pad level, and that motor that never seems to idle. One play ends with the kind of thud that makes offensive linemen and quarterbacks think twice. The audio captures the mood perfectly: “You’re like, ‘I don’t want to do that again.’”
That’s the reputation he built in Year 3. Not just splash plays, but the consistent, wear-you-down pressure that shows up on every down.
From Tongan Roots to SoCal Star
Tuipulotu’s journey carries extra weight for the Tongan community that has long produced tough, physical football players. His family came from Tonga through New Zealand before settling in Southern California. He grew up speaking Tongan at home, and that same quiet strength and work ethic shows up in how he plays.
Head coach Jim Harbaugh has raved about it publicly. “As relentless as any player I’ve been around,” Harbaugh said. “Ball moves, he moves. Being able to defeat a blocker, come to a point, strike a blow, control the block, shed, run to the ball.” High praise from a coach who has seen plenty of elite edge players.
No. 86 on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2026…@chargers LB Tuli Tuipulotu! @NFLFilms pic.twitter.com/gj4en5FqHw
— NFL (@NFL) July 1, 2026
Tuipulotu himself keeps it simple. “I think I just have a certain mentality where if I don’t do enough, I’m not going to perform,” he said after the season. “I always feel like the less I do, the less production.” That mindset turned a rotational player into one of the league’s top young pass rushers in a single year.
Steady Climb, Then the Explosion
The progression was clear if you watched closely. He posted 4.5 sacks as a rookie in 2023, then 8.5 in 2024 while still splitting reps. Last season he stepped into a full-time role and the production jumped. Thirteen sacks. Twenty tackles for loss. First Pro Bowl. The Chargers finally had their first player crack the Top 100 in years.
It wasn’t just the sack total that stood out. Pro Football Focus credited him with 17 run stops, tying for eighth among edge defenders. He affected the game on early downs and obvious passing situations. That two-way impact is exactly what the Top 100 voters reward.
What It Means for the Chargers
At 23, Tuipulotu is still ascending. The Chargers defense has been searching for that next cornerstone piece on the edge, and he’s delivering. With Khalil Mack still mentoring younger players and the front seven taking shape, this recognition lands at the perfect time — right as the team builds toward 2026 and beyond.
The league saw what Chargers fans have been watching for a while now. The kid doesn’t take plays off. He doesn’t stay blocked. And when he gets home, quarterbacks remember it.
No. 86 on the Top 100 might be the start of something bigger. For Tuli Tuipulotu, the work that got him here is the same work that will keep pushing him up the list in the years ahead.