Rex Sunahara

Rex Sunahara (born October 9, 1996) is an American professional football long snapper for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Rhode Island Rams and West Virginia Mountaineers.

Early life Sunahara was born on October 9, 1996. He is of Japanese descent via his father Reed, who came from Hawaii and is the head coach of the women's volleyball program at WVU. His younger brother RJ played college basketball for Georgia.

He attended Bay High School, where he played varsity baseball, football, and basketball. He played as a wide receiver and defensive back in high school. In his senior year, he earned All-Ohio Division IV Third Team honors. During the football season, he appeared in eight games as the long snapper and recorded 4 special teams tackles. In 2018, Sunahara became the Mountaineers starting long snapper. Following the 2019 season, Sunahara was named a Patrick Mannelly Award Semifinalist. He was also invited to participate in the 2020 NFLPA Collegiate All-Star Game and the 2020 Hula Bowl All-Star Game.

Professional career

Miami Dolphins Sunahara signed with the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent on August 1, 2020. He was waived on August 4, and participated in a workout for the Pittsburgh Steelers before being re-signed to the Dolphins' practice squad on November 16. Sunahara signed a reserve/futures deal upon completion of the 2020 NFL season and returned to the Dolphins practice squad for the 2021 season. Sunahara was again waived by the Dolphins on August 9, 2021. He was cut two days later, but returned to sign a reserve/futures contract with Pittsburgh on January 18, 2022.

San Antonio Brahmas On November 17, 2022, Sunahara was selected with the 7th pick of the specialists phase of the 2023 XFL draft by the San Antonio Brahmas. He appeared in all ten games before receiving an invitation to a workout with the Steelers on June 2, 2023.

Pittsburgh Steelers (second stint) On June 19, 2023, Sunahara signed a one-year contract with the Steelers. He was released by Pittsburgh on August 26.

San Antonio Brahmas (second stint) On January 24, 2024, Sunahara re-signed with the San Antonio Brahmas. His contract was terminated on August 8.

Cleveland Browns On August 8, 2024, Sunahara signed with the Cleveland Browns. He was waived by Cleveland on August 26, and was subsequently re-signed to the team's practice squad. Sunahara was released again on August 29. He was signed to the active roster on October 9.

On April 6, 2026, Sunahara re-signed with the Browns.

NFL career statistics Legend Bold Career high

Regular season Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds Avg Lng TD PD FF Fum FR Yds TD 2024 CLE 12 0 2 1 1 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2025 CLE 17 0 7 3 4 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Career 29 0 9 4 5 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0