Rugby-Welsh winger Rees-Zammit felt he was wasting talent during NFL stint
(Reuters) -Louis Rees-Zammit said he felt he was wasting his talent during his NFL stint with the Kansas City Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars but has no regrets about pursuing the American football adventure.
The Welsh winger signed for Bristol Bears for the 2025-26 Premiership Rugby season on Thursday, marking his return to union after an 18-month stint in the NFL.
The 24-year-old had joined the Chiefs in March last year after impressing scouts at the NFL International Player Pathway. However, the four-times Super Bowl champions left him off their roster for the 2024 season.
He later joined the Jaguars, first as part of their practice squad last August and then on their active roster in February, before opting to return to rugby union last month.
"I just felt like I was kind of wasting my talent out there," he told British media on Tuesday.
"I gave it my best shot but it's very difficult to get into the NFL if you haven't gone through the college system, you just don't get the same opportunities as those boys.
"It makes sense from a coach's point of view, because those boys have been playing that sport for so long and it's hard to coach someone up on the sport they've never played before ..."
Despite leaving the NFL having never played in a regular-season game, Rees-Zammit said he had no regrets about giving it a shot and that he had learned so much from the likes of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce.
"Just to be involved in a locker room that was completely different to rugby, next to global figures like Mahomes and Kelce, I learned from everything they did day to day...," he added.
"There's no regrets. I'm very happy that I made the decision because would I regret it if I never did it? That's the biggest regret."
(Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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