Insight Tribune

How the Chiefs’ Louis Rees-Zammit is tackling the transition from rugby to the NFL

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How the Chiefs’ Louis Rees-Zammit is tackling the transition from rugby to the NFL


ST. JOSEPH, Mo. — Grinning last month, Louis Rees-Zammit shared just how much he wanted to experience his first full-contact hit as an NFL player. Rees-Zammit, the Welsh former rugby star who joined the Kansas City Chiefs in March, knew he was just a few days away from his first training camp practice in full pads.

“I can’t wait to see the difference,” Rees-Zammit said.

His true “welcome to the NFL” moment, when the intensity level surprised him, came the morning of July 28, which was the Chiefs’ third consecutive padded practice. Rees-Zammit’s one-on-one drill that day was one every running back in the NFL has had to endure: The blitzing linebacker or safety charging into the backfield, the lone assignment for the running back is to prevent the defender from reaching the quarterback.

Across from Rees-Zammit on the field was linebacker Cole Christiansen, who like Rees-Zammit is trying to earn one of the final spots on the Chiefs’ initial 53-man roster. With quarterback Patrick Mahomes holding the ball in the pocket, Christiansen attacked from the B gap. Upon impact, Rees-Zammit lost his leverage and found out just how badly he could lose a pass-blocking rep. Christiansen de-cleated Rees-Zammit.

“It’s very physical,” Rees-Zammit said after Wednesday’s practice. “I’ve had to learn to adapt and lower my body height. In rugby, that’s not too much of a big deal. The blows you take here are pretty big. To be honest with you, it’s a completely different sport.

“I’ve never had to pass protect before. It’s actually illegal in rugby. I have to try to pick it up as quickly as possible. I’m not going to be amazing to start with.”

Reps like the one against Christiansen, were to be expected, though. No newcomer on the Chiefs’ 91-man roster is as new to the sport as Rees-Zammit, 23, who will play in the first organized football game of his life Saturday when the Chiefs face the Jacksonville Jaguars in a preseason opener.

For Rees-Zammit, Saturday’s game — and training camp, for that matter — is about showing the Chiefs how fast he can learn and improve with each new experience on a football field.

Just seconds after his most embarrassing moment in camp, Rees-Zammit stood up, wiped the sweat from his eyes and got back in his two-point stance. When the next one-on-one rep began — against Christiansen again — Rees-Zammit did a better job of withstanding his teammate’s strength, pushing him away from Mahomes.

“The transition’s been fantastic for him,” Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco said of Rees-Zammit. “Being that player that is a (leader) in the (running backs) room, (I’m) putting in his ear, ‘Just keep working hard, keep finishing.’”

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With just three exhibition games before Aug. 27, the NFL’s annual cutdown day, Rees-Zammit will attempt to accomplish with the Chiefs what he did in rugby: Excel faster than anyone expected.

At 18, he signed his first professional contract with Gloucester, becoming the club’s youngest-ever Premiership player. Rees-Zammit was an impact player as a rookie, too. Not only was he Gloucester’s youngest European try scorer in 2019, but he also scored 12 tries in 15 appearances, improving at a rapid pace that doesn’t happen often in professional rugby. His most undeniable trait as one of the emerging wingers in world rugby was his elite speed, which led to his nickname Rees-Lightning.

Fans gravitated to Rees-Zammit because of his confident playing style, his looks and his appetite to be an international celebrity at a young age.

In 2021, Rees-Zammit helped lead Wales, his home country, to win the Six Nations championship. He produced his greatest highlight during the event, too, a clutch, game-winning try that featured plenty of his skills — speed, hand-eye coordination and bold creativity. In the final minutes of a road match against Scotland, Rees-Zammit caught the ball on the perimeter of the field and knew he had just one defender to beat. A sprinting Rees-Zammit chipped the ball over the defender with his right foot and sprinted past him to catch the ball off the first bounce for the match-winning score.

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In 32 international appearances for Wales, he scored 14 tries.

A few months after the Six Nations tournament, Rees-Zammit received one of the greatest honors in the sport: He was named to the British & Irish Lions squad — featuring players from England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. But during his offseason in 2022, he began his plans to switch sports, working in Atlanta with longtime performance coach Chip Smith, who has trained more than 3,000 professional athletes, in hopes of becoming a viable NFL player.

“I achieved everything I wanted to in rugby,” Rees-Zammit said in early May. “I’ve always wanted to live in America. This was the perfect time to try to make it in the NFL and live over here.”

Rees-Zammit’s move to the NFL was the biggest coup for the league’s International Player Pathway — which recruits athletes from around the world in hopes of increasing the league’s ranks of international players — since the program’s launch in 2017. Rees-Zammit ran the 40-yard dash in 4.43 seconds at his pro day in March in front of scouts from 31 NFL teams.

He signed a three-year, $2.83 million contract with the Chiefs because he wanted to join a Super Bowl contender and felt coach Andy Reid could best use his skills in a versatile role as a running back. General manager Brett Veach said the Chiefs are committed to giving Rees-Zammit plenty of time to showcase his capabilities in the NFL. Even if Rees-Zammit struggles in the preseason, much of his rookie season could be spent further developing his skills on the practice squad.

“We know he’s got incredible top-end speed,” linebacker Drue Tranquill said of Rees-Zammit. “He’s got to learn in pass pro, how to sit down and how to take on blocks. He’s got to learn the in and outs of the game, but he’s a great athlete and that’ll come with time.”

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Since joining the Chiefs, Rees-Zammit has gained the admiration of his teammates through his enthusiasm to learn as much as he can about the sport, the business of the NFL and how he can best use his skills at running back.

“Anything I can take from any of these boys that have been playing the sport for a long time is amazing,” Rees-Zammit said. “Isiah has been helping me out massively.”

Pacheco often teaches Rees-Zammit techniques during individual periods in practice. In a video released by the Chiefs, Pacheco offered pass-blocking advice to Rees-Zammit, sharing the same lessons he learned as a rookie two years ago from Jerick McKinnon.

The 6-foot-2 Rees-Zammit gained 16 pounds in the summer, reporting to camp at 209 pounds, to help him be better prepared to endure the league’s physicality. He hasn’t missed a practice, showing durability and strong conditioning despite training in hotter temperatures than he was accustomed to. Certain details have been refined, too, such as being consistent with his pre-snap stance and body language when he lines up so he doesn’t tip off the defense about the upcoming play.

“The biggest difference is just mental,” he said. “I’m nonstop trying to learn this playbook because as soon as I can play fast, that’s the biggest thing. We don’t finish meetings until 8 (p.m.), so I spend an extra two hours (after) just learning the plays because I’m playing catchup. There’s no time to rest for me. I’ve got to give this my all because ultimately this is my dream.

“The first goal is to make the team. I know special teams are going to be massive for me.”

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The best and most direct way for Rees-Zammit to earn a roster spot is by excelling as a kickoff returner. At the end of most of practices, special teams coordinator Dave Toub has had Rees-Zammit and receiver Nikko Remigio as the Chiefs’ top two kickoff returners.

“We always tell the guys that three or four guys make the team because of their special teams play,” Reid said of Rees-Zammit and Remigio. “Those two would probably fit into that category, but they’ve still got to do well at their position. For them to make the team, they’ve got to help out in that area.”

Toub believes Rees-Zammit could be the perfect player to fit the NFL’s new kickoff rules.

The NFL modified its kickoff to return the play to relevance. Last season, the kickoff had a return rate of just 21.8 percent, the lowest in the league’s 104-year history. No kickoff was returned in Super Bowl LVIII. League officials want the return rate this season to increase to at least 30 percent.

The Chiefs hope Rees-Zammit can make an impact on kickoff returns in the preseason by blending the ball-carrying skills he perfected in rugby with the improving vision, acceleration and elusiveness he has shown in camp when he has the ball in the open field.

“We’re trying to get him all the work we can to bring him up to speed,” Toub said of Rees-Zammit. “He’s been great. He’s doing a good job as a returner.”

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Rees-Zammit didn’t join the Chiefs simply to be known as a kickoff returner.

He wants the ball in his hands as much as possible, proving to the Chiefs that he can be a competent running back. He also wants to be successful for Joseph Zammit, his father who introduced him to the NFL. Growing up in Penarth, Wales, Rees-Zammit watched many NFL games alongside his father, who became so passionate about American football that he played in the British American Football Association in 1987 for the Cardiff Tigers as a receiver and running back.

“I’ve told him about training camp, how tough it’s been,” Rees-Zammit said of his father. “He’s been giving me some tips and tricks on pass protection — getting in close, shooting my hands and dropping my height.”

Rees-Zammit has earned some small victories in camp. The Chiefs’ first padded practice was rough for Rees-Zammit, who was hit and tackled behind the line of scrimmage over and over again. The next day, he missed a wide-open running lane, instead running into the back of tight end Irv Smith Jr. But the next day, he showed better vision and patience on a stretch play by sprinting through the correct lane, the rep ending with no defender touching him.

Last week, Rees-Zammit’s most impressive rep was as a receiver in a one-on-one drill against linebacker Leo Chenal. Rees-Zammit flashed his speed on a fade route near the sideline, as he sprinted by Chenal, tracked the deep pass and caught the ball 30 yards downfield. And Rees-Zammit even won a one-on-one battle in pass protection against rookie linebacker Swayze Bozeman, the rep ending with Pacheco shouting in celebration.

“I’m incredibly proud of myself and the journey I’ve been on,” Rees-Zammit said.

One of the best parts of Saturday’s game for Rees-Zammit is that his parents, Joseph and Maxine, will be in the stands at EverBank Stadium to watch him perform.

“Oh, he’s just as excited as I am,” Rees-Zammit said of his father. “It’s going to be amazing, a dream come true to be able to put the uniform on and embrace the moment. I’m going to go out there and focus on my job fully and go for it.”

(Photo: Denny Medley / USA Today)



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