Western Mail

‘It’s time to get excited’ says NFL expert

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news by simply saying: “Louis ReesZammit you are a Super Bowl champ.”

DAZN reporter Diego Campoy wrote on X, with a link to one of his incredible rugby moments: “Be alert with this. The new signing of the Kansas City Chiefs... is a rugby star! His name is Louis Rees-Zammit. Born in Wales. He is 23 years old. News that opens a huge door. He does things like this.”

Kansas City Star writer Jesse Newell said: “He still could be a longshot to make an impact with the Chiefs. There are few IPP success stories, though the NFL provides some benefits to teams that keep those players. Two examples: NFL teams with IPP players are allowed an additional practice squad spot and also a training camp roster exemption.

“Rees-Zammit’s roster hopes could be helped by the NFL’s new kick-off rule, which should force teams to emphasise kick-off returners more.

With the rulebook change, touchbacks will return to the 30-yard line, meaning returns should become a more prominent part of the game.”

NFL reporter Ari Meirov, who writes for The 33rd Team with an 800,000 X following, said: “The Chiefs are expected to sign Rugby star Louis Rees-Zammit, per Jordan Schultz. The plan is for him to be an offensive weapon, used in various rules. A fun addition to Andy Reid’s offense.”

AN NFL expert has spelt out why the potential signing of former Welsh rugby star Louis ReesZammit by the Kansas City Chiefs is such huge news.

Speaking to BBC Radio Wales, journalist and NFL writer Ben Isaacs, was asked if it was “right to get excited”.

“It’s time to get excited,” he said. “When I was on last week, I said I expected him to find a team after his pro day, and his pro day was actually disappoint­ing. He didn’t show off his skills quite as well as he could have. But the teams will have watched a lot of footage of him playing rugby, they will have got him into their buildings, run some tests on him and spoken to him and he will have impressed people. He is an impressive young man, as a physical specimen, he’s got a good head on his shoulders.

“Although I expected him to find a team because all teams are now allowed one extra player if they’re a designated internatio­nal player, what is key is that this is the perfect landing spot. Not because they’re the Super Bowl champions, not because he might hang out with Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift, it’s because what he needed was to be on a team that had a really good quarterbac­k and a really good head coach, and it happens to be the Kansas City Chiefs have the best QB in the league, and the best coach. Because of those two, especially the coach, are known for finding creative ways to utilise his unique skills and that’s really what was needed with him because it can’t just be that ‘he’s fast, let’s give him the ball’ it’s not going to work like that they’re going to have a bit creative, a bit weird with the sort of things they use him for.

“It’s so perfect I don’t think anyone could have dreamt a better story for him.”

When asked if it was “too good to be true”, Mr Isaacs added: “The Kansas City Chiefs have been the best team in the NFL over the last five years but have had a bit of a revolving door in certain positions, in that they’ll bring somebody in who doesn’t cost a lot of money, turn them into a bit of a star in their system, and then when they want a lot of money, they go somewhere else but not being as successful. They’ve a core

The Spun wrote: “The Kansas City Chiefs may have just found a diamond in the rough. It’ll be fascinatin­g to see how Chiefs head coach Andy Reid utilizes Rees-Zammit, especially in the preseason.”

Joe Summers, writing for KC Kingdom, a Kansas City Chiefs-specific news and fan community, said: “The Chiefs made an unusual yet fascinatin­g addition to the offense, signing internatio­nal rugby star Louis ReesZammit. group of players but the rest have kind of cycle in and out, this will work out well for him. We’ve got to temper our expectatio­ns.

“There’s a very good chance he won’t play in a regular season game next season, and fans shouldn’t be too downhearte­d if that happens. You’ve got to remember his developmen­t is way behind that of the other players coming into the league who have been playing US universiti­es for years.

“Just this week the NFL has tweaked its kick off rule. For a while, no-one could return any kick-offs, the ball was boomed out of the building and no-one had the chance to bring it back. It feels to me like this is the reason they’re getting him in.

“Because he always looked like he would great returning the kick because of the way he can move, it feels like the chiefs will have seen that rule and the way he plays and the way he can move his body and thought ‘do you know what, we could get him returning kick-offs and he could be a real weapon on the field.”

Asked what signing a contract will mean, the writer replied: “It will mean he will be on the expanded roster that the teams start with in the off-season. The off-season has basically begun now and they can sign nearly 100 players but that has to be whittled down to the 53. All he will sign now is a contract that will take him up to the start of the season. If he doesn’t make the final roster or practice squad roster then he’s done. He’ll have a certain amount of money, but he will then be a free agent, out of work again.

“Really this is only going to take him up until about August. But, this is the thing, the practice squads are expanded, the practice squads don’t really get to play, but if he has to sit and learn at the Kansas City Chiefs for 12 months then that will be great for him. Just because he’s signing a contract it doesn’t even mean it’s six months.

“This is incredibly exciting. I grew up in Cardiff as a massive NFL fan, the idea that a kid from Penarth could be playing in the NFL really sets me off when I saw that news at 6am, I was absolutely thrilled and any NFL fan in Wales should be so excited by this.”

“It’s expected the speedster could help on special teams and potentiall­y offensivel­y, giving Kansas City a dynamic proven competitor to bolster the roster.

“After the league voted on a new kick-off rule to encourage action rather than touchbacks, players like ReesZammit can provide an immense value given the similarity to rugby rules.”

 ?? ?? > Louis Rees-Zammit during his NFL training. He has now reportedly signed with Kansas City Chiefs
> Louis Rees-Zammit during his NFL training. He has now reportedly signed with Kansas City Chiefs

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