Louis Rees-Zammit still impacting NFL as rugby star starts new life in UK

A young Brit who achieved his NFL dreams once received an inspiring call from Louis Rees-Zammit. The Welsh star left the Rugby world in shock when he ventured into American football back in January 2024. The 24-year-old initially joined the Kansas City Chiefs on a three-year contract after impressing on the NFL's International Player Pathway programme. However, after spells with the Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars, Rees-Zammit announced in July that he would return to rugby, having not played a single down in the NFL.

London-born Rafael Blakstad had been playing for the Saracens academy before switching to American football. The towering wide receiver explained how he discovered the sport, and how a phone call from Rees-Zammit changed everything, with the now Bristol Bears star showing his compassionate side to the youngster. "It was completely by chance and coincidence," Blakstad told Sky Sports in October 2024, about ending up on the pathway to the NFL.

"I actually came to Loughborough for an open day for rugby. I played for Saracens and was an England Academy player for them, so Loughborough is one of the best rugby schools and I wanted to come here for union.

"I actually happened to get lost and I bumped into Lamonte Wilson (Head of the UK NFL Academy) and was asking where something was, he then asked, 'Are you playing American football?'

"That kind of sparked this switch. I came down for a session or two and then one evening I was unsuspecting at home and got a call from Louis Rees-Zammit, which was mind-boggling.

"He was literally one of my favourite rugby players and achieved so much so young in his career. Obviously I'd heard about his move across and things like that and our head coach Steve Hagen was out there coaching. Being able to speak to him for a good 15/20 minutes was great, just to ask him about it because I was kind of on the fence about making the switch because rugby was going so well.

"Essentially there were similarities between both of us. He was obviously a lot higher level than me, but in terms of making that switch and going back to square one."

He continued: "But ultimately the opportunities are infinite, and speaking to him I decide 'yes, that is definitely something I want to do' and the rest is history. He was telling me that if he had the opportunity to try and do the Academy when he was my age, even if he knew he was going to achieve all the things he would have later on in rugby, he still would given it all up.

"Hearing that from one of your idols, I just realised I couldn't miss this opportunity because this is clearly such a big thing, and if he's willing to give up all the things he's achieved to give it a go and see if it can work, then why shouldn't I?"

Blakstad was offered a college football scholarship by the University of Mary in North Dakota, as confirmed by the NFL Academy's official Instagram account on June 15, 2025, with the young star being congratulated on his offer by the institution.

Despite this significant step from the University of Mary, there is yet to be any confirmation that he has accepted the offer. He reportedly continues his training with the NFL Academy and occasionally shares updates about his progress on Instagram.

Meanwhile, Rees-Zammit, in an interview with The Telegraph in August 2025, confessed that it was time to leave the NFL. He said: "I just felt that I was wasting my talent out there."

He added: "It's very difficult to get into the NFL if you haven't come through the college system," he further explained. "You just don't get the same opportunities as those boys. I wasn't getting many reps and I was fed up when I was practising there. [Rugby] was a good journey but it's one that wasn't finished so I'm excited to carry it on."