A Bengals team leader on the field and in the locker room, Peko in 2012 played his seventh Cincinnati season ... Was starting NT and led D-line in tackles (80), his fourth time to lead line in last five seasons ... Has played every game in six of his seven seasons and has started every game in five of the last six ... Has also been used as an offensive lead blocker in short-yardage situations, though not in ’12.
CAREER TRANSACTIONS: Selected by Cincinnati in fourth round of 2006 NFL Draft (123rd overall) ... Signed with Bengals on 7-28-06 ... Signed five-year contract extension (through 2014) with Bengals on 6-12-08.
2012 GENERAL: One of 10 Bengals to start every game ... In addition to line-leading 80 tackles (fourth on team), had two sacks, three passes defensed and a fumble recovery ... Logged five QB pressures and four tackles-for-loss.
2012 GAME-BY-GAME: Line-leading five tackles Sept. 16 vs. Cleveland ... Five tackles Sept. 30 at Jacksonville, including a sack of Blaine Gabbert on game’s first play from scrimmage ... On Oct. 14 at Cleveland, had nine tackles, season high by a D-lineman (breaking his mark of eight set previous week), with a pass defensed ... Eight tackles Nov. 4 vs. Denver ... Four tackles Nov. 11 vs. N.Y. Giants, including a shared sack of Eli Manning, and also had a pass defensed ... Two tackles Nov. 25 vs. Oakland, and his pressure on QB Carson Palmer helped lead to an INT by teammate Chris Crocker ... Among his five tackles Dec. 2 at San Diego was a shared sack of Philip Rivers ... Three tackles Dec. 13 at Philadelphia, and recovered a fumble (forced by Carlos Dunlap) on the first Eagles drive of the game, setting up a Bengals TD drive ... Seven tackles Dec. 23 at Pittsburgh ... Led line with eight tackles Dec. 30 vs. Baltimore, and had a pass defensed ... Led line in tackles (nine) in Wild Card playoff 1-5-13 at Houston, tying his game high from regular season.
PREVIOUS SEASONS: 2006 - Played in every game in D-line rotation, and made one start, Nov. 30 vs. Baltimore, subbing for injured John Thornton ... On Oct. 29 vs. Atlanta, had a season-high seven tackles that included a shared sack of Michael Vick in fourth quarter ... Had his biggest impact game Dec. 24 at Denver, as his six tackles included two sacks, and he added a forced fumble that Bengals recovered, setting up TD drive.
2007 - Started every game at LDT ... On Oct. 21 vs. N.Y. Jets, his fumble recovery on an aborted shotgun snap gave Bengals possession at midfield in fourth quarter, setting up TD drive that helped secure win ... Had a season-high eight tackles Dec. 15 at San Francisco, including shared sack against Shaun Hill in third quarter.
2008 - Led line with career-best 108 tackles, ranked third on team ... Led team in tackles for loss (six) ... Had eight tackles in each of the first three games, leading line in each contest ... Line-leading nine stops in shutout win Dec. 21 at Cleveland.
2009 - Started Games 1-11 at LDT, battling knee injuries in several games ... Injuries eventually sidelined him for last five games, but he came back to start in Wild Card playoff 1-9-10 vs. N.Y. Jets ... Voted by team as one of two defensive captains ... On offense Oct. 25 vs. Chicago, provided key block on Cedric Benson one-yard TD run in fourth quarter ... Had four tackles Nov. 15 at Pittsburgh as defense limited Steelers to 226 net yards, 156 yards below their average entering the game.
2010 - Voted by teammates as one of two defensive captains, and started every game at NT ... Four tackles Oct. 8 vs. Pittsburgh, including one for loss, and was lead blocker on one-yard TD run by Cedric Benson.
2011 - His 91 regular-season tackles ranked fourth on team, and he had 2.5 sacks ... On Sept. 18 at Denver, had seven tackles and recovered a Kyle Orton fumble at Broncos 14, setting up a FG ... Led line with eight tackles Dec. 4 at Pittsburgh, and had his first solo sack of season, dropping Ben Roethlisberger for five-yard loss ... Played normal defensive snaps and also played briefly on offense Dec. 18 at St. Louis, filling in for injured FB Chris Pressley in short-yardage situations ... In offensive role at St. Louis, helped clear way for a four-yard Cedric Benson TD in fourth quarter ... Led line and tied for team lead Dec. 24 vs. Arizona with six tackles, including an 11-yard sack and an additional QB pressure ... Had line-leading eight tackles (second on team) in Wild Card playoff 1-7-12 at Houston.
COLLEGE: Played at Michigan State in 2004 and ’05, after spending ’02-03 at College of the Canyons (Santa Clarita, Calif.) ... Played as a reserve for Michigan State in 2004, and broke out as a senior, starting every game at LDT ... Posted 53 tackles as a senior, with a sack, two fumble recoveries, a forced fumble and a blocked PAT ... Had one of 2005 college season’s most publicized plays, a 74-yard fumble return for a TD vs. Michigan that tied score in fourth quarter before Michigan pulled out 34-31 OT win.
PERSONAL: Hometown is Pago Pago, American Samoa ... Played both offensive and defensive line at Samoana High School ... Married (wife Anna), with two sons, Domata Jr. and Joseph ... Brother, Tupe, played OL at Michigan State and played in NFL with Indianapolis Colts ... Sociology major at Michigan State ... First name is pronounced “DOE-mah-tah” and last name is pronounced “PECK-o.”
