Louis Rees-Zammit has offered an update on progress at the Kansas City Chiefs, after he faced a media scrum at their recent training camp on Friday.
The former Wales rugby star is working hard behind the scenes to master his new sport and admits his biggest hurdle will be getting to grips with the team’s playbook.
The 23-year-old is aiming to make the Chiefs 53-man roster, which would be an enormous achievement given he is competing against athletes who have been playing American football since childhood. Early noises coming out of camp suggest that ‘LRZ’ is very much in contention, with both coaches and teammates impressed with his athleticism and work ethic.
“I think it’s just learning all the plays. It’s so different from what I’m used to. Obviously, in rugby, you don’t have to learn as much, but I think physically, I’m in good shape,” he told reporters, crediting rugby for having put him in a good position to tackle the NFL on a physical front. “I think rugby really prepared me for this, with the conditioning and being in good physical shape. The biggest difference is just mental, staying on top of things, staying on top of the playbook and making no mistakes.
“I’m non-stop trying to learn this playbook because as soon as I can stop thinking and can just play fast, that’s the biggest thing for me. We don’t finish meetings until 8 pm and I probably go to bed at 10 pm, so an extra two hours just learning the plays.
“I’m playing catch up with a lot of people who have played American football since they were little kids. There’s no time to rest for me. I have to give this my all because ultimately, this is my dream. To make it come true, I have to be a step ahead of a lot of people.”
