Ex-Chiefs receiver shares details of what happens when a player is cut by team
The Chiefs took a flier on a former rugby star this summer, but things didn’t work out for Louis Rees-Zammit.
After appearing in all three preseason games, Rees-Zammit was released by the Chiefs in August, and he signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars as a practice-squad player.
While on the Rugby Pass podcast, Rees-Zammit talked about the process of being released with the Chiefs after signing a three-year, $2.83 million deal with $230,000 in guaranteed money, per Arrowhead Pride.
“The thing with American football compared to pretty much any sport is when you sign that contract, you have guaranteed money in that contract,” Rees-Zammit said. “And if you don’t have guaranteed money, they can cut you at any point.
“That’s what happened to me. I went for a training camp and then there’s a day that everyone is in the building and they just start cutting players because they have to make a 53-man squad.”
Rees-Zammit said he never heard from coach Andy Reid or general manager Brett Veach when the Chiefs cut him. But Veach later said he encouraged Rees-Zammit to pursue other opportunities and the Jaguars signed him to their practice squad.
“It’s just cut-throat. They’ve got a whole group of player personnel, they got a whole group of scouts,” Rees-Zammit said of the Chiefs’ process of cutting players. “They’ve got so many people for so many different position, so you just get a text message.
“It’s honestly just brutal. You’re all in the building and you get a text message to basically say, ‘Can you bring your iPad and meet me in a certain room?’ That’s when you know. If you don’t get the message, you’re in the team. If you do like I did, I got the message, went upstairs and spoke to player personnel. Had some positive chats with them.
“But at the end of the day, I wanted to play receiver. They’ve got a very strong receiving group at Kansas City. The Jags allowed me to be on their practice squad, which is amazing. ...
“I got calls from Andy Reid and the general manager Brett Veach asking me to join the Chiefs. And I had that from 10 other teams. I didn’t hear anything after I got cut, but that’s just the business.
“I knew how cut-throat it was. And obviously experiencing how cut-throat it is, you just get on with it. I’m not going to beg them to stay, so it’s just onto the next job. I’m as happy as ever at the Jags.”
Taylor Swift memento
Rees-Zammit praised his Chiefs teammates, and said they are huge stars but also humble.
One happy memory for Rees-Zammit was attending a Taylor Swift concert. He got a handwritten note from Swift, who is dating Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
“I didn’t get to meet her,” Rees-Zammit said. “I went to a concert and I got a handwritten note from her. It was pretty crazy This was before training camp, so it was just like, ‘Good luck for the season, good luck for training camp, I heard you’re doing well.’ Stuff like that. So that’s pretty cool.
“It’s at home. It’s in Cardiff. I didn’t bring it out to America with me. That was pretty crazy, getting a letter from Taylor Swift. But that was kind of the life I was in and I was just rolling with it.”
This story was originally published October 22, 2024 at 9:42 AM.
