When Welsh rugby player Louis Rees-Zammit announced last year that he would move overseas to try to make it in the NFL, he was taking a big risk by giving up stardom at home for a sport he had never played before. So far it hasn’t paid off, but he says he’s giving himself a year or two to keep trying.
Rees-Zammit originally went to the Chiefs and played running back for them in the preseason last year, then was cut by the Chiefs and signed to the Jaguars’ practice squad as a wide receiver. He’s still in Jacksonville and said he thinks he’s got some more time to figure out the American game.
“International players get probably two to three years to make it in the NFL,” Rees-Zammit told TalkSport.com. “So I wanted to do it at a time where I maybe could come back to rugby. I’m 24 now, probably got one to two more years to try and make it depending on how this year goes. I’ll be 25, 26 when I go back to rugby. I like to think I can still play at the highest level.”
Rees-Zammit said he thinks training in the NFL may prove to make him a better rugby player in the future.
“When I was playing rugby, I went to America twice to train and the things I learned there I knew straight away would help my game. Now, having two years of it, I think if I did have to go back I’ll definitely be able to excel again,” he said.
But first he’ll try to excel in Jaguars camp, and hope they keep him around for the regular season.
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