Chiefs' Louis Rees-Zammit, Former Rugby Star, Expects a 'Versatile Role' in NFL

Kansas City Chiefs running back Louis Rees-Zammit is gearing up to begin his NFL career after the rugby star signed with the team in March.

While it will be an adjustment as he transitions to a new sport, he believes he is going to have a "versatile role" with Kansas City, per ESPN's Adam Teicher.

"I've been put in the running back group to start with [but] I think it's going to be a versatile role for me,'' Rees-Zammit said. "I'm hoping the coaches are very creative here. ... It's all about me learning the playbook and learning the game because without that I can't do anything else. I'm fully focused on, 'I've got to make the team. How am I going to do that?' I've got to perform on the field, I've got to live in the playbook and then we'll go from there."

Rees-Zammit, 23, spent the last six years playing professional rugby in England, but decided to try his hand in the NFL following the conclusion of the 2024 Premiership Rugby season.

He practiced with the Chiefs this week for the first time since signing and has also been working out with Patrick Mahomes in Texas, Teicher noted.

Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said the early practices have been a good opportunity for Rees-Zammit to learn and begin adjusting to a different style of play.

"This was good for him,'' Reid said. "This gave him an opportunity to really jump in and learn and he's so diligent with everything and wants to be so good at everything and I've appreciated that. You could see the progress he's made. You saw yesterday with the long run he had on the screen.

"He's done a good job of working on holding the ball. They do hold it a little bit differently and it's not quite as pointy as a football, so he's done a good job with that and he'll learn the pad level the first time he gets hit.''

Rees-Zammit will likely need some time to figure out the intricacies of football, but he has a long offseason ahead to do so. If his rugby stardom translates to the NFL, he could be in a good position to contribute to the Chiefs as they set out on their quest for a third straight Super Bowl.