Louis Rees-Zammit makes his NFL debut for the Kansas City Chiefs

Louis Rees-Zammit reached a significant career milestone over the weekend with the former Wales rugby winger making his NFL preseason debut for the Kansas City Chiefs.

Rees-Zammit signed a three-year deal with the Chiefs in March after making a headline-grabbing code-switch away from rugby union. The 23-year-old has since shown signs of promise during training sessions with the two-time defending Super Bowl champions.

The former British and Irish Lions outside back has had to wait a fair while to get his first taste of a competitive match but that opportunity finally came on Saturday against the Jacksonville Jaguares at EverBank Stadium.

Patrick Mahomes, Trevor Lawreance, Carson Wentz and Mac Jones were among the big name players getting some snaps in this preseason hit-out, but there’s also plenty of interest in how one former rugby star would fare wearing a helmet and pads.

Rees-Zammit played a bit of running back, kick returner, kicker and as part of the special teams unit on punt returns. The Welshman finished a fairly quiet night with one rushing yard from two carries, three receiving yards from one catch, and a tackle as well.

Incredibly, the No.9-wearing Rees-Zammit was also called upon to take a kick-off for the Chiefs during the third-quarter.

LRZ highlights vs the Jags:pic.twitter.com/GDKERFHk9k

— Ben Thomas (@Benfthomas_10) August 11, 2024

“It was a great first experience. I loved it, I loved getting the snaps that I did, on special teams as well which was great,” Rees-Zammit told The Irish NFL Show.

“I’ve just got to look back on this, review it and see how I can get better.

“I got a little kick-off – that was great. Being able to play special teams is amazing, to exploit different skills.

“I’m happy and I’m going to see how I can get better and take that on to the next game.”

And that was the first NFL carry for #Chiefs Louis Rees-Zammit..

Looks like it’s looked at camp when he runs thru the tackles..

— PJ Green (@ByPJGreen) August 11, 2024

Some NFL fans have been quick to criticise Rees-Zammit after the 13-26 loss to the Jaguares, with one X (formerly Twitter) user claiming the former rugby star won’t make the Chiefs’ final 53 man roster for the upcoming regular season.

One fan on social media described Rees-Zammit as “slow” while another was a bit more critical by expressing the opinion that he “looks stiff with the ball in his hands.” Rees-Zammit was also labelled “the least elusive back I’ve ever seen.”

But for all the negative feedback the Welshman has received, there’s no doubt that an exciting new chapter in Rees-Zammit’s sporting career is being written. That’s game one done and he was all smiles in the changerooms after the American football contest.

“The atmosphere was great,” Rees-Zammit said.

“It’s pretty electric in this stadium and there were a load of Chiefs fans which helped massively. Great game and looking forward to the next one.”