It is no secret that the Kansas City Chiefs will be making a run at NFL history this upcoming season. No team has ever won three Super Bowls in a row, but the Chiefs have a chance to become the first to ever do it. They have reloaded their roster on both sides of the ball and are exhausting every option to gain an edge. One of their international pathway players received high praise from one Chiefs coach this week.
Louis Rees-Zammit is a former Welsh rugby player who competed at one of the highest levels in the world. He joined the Chiefs as part of the NFL's International Pathway Program.
Rees-Zammit played the wing position in rugby, which saw him fielding a lot of high balls. This should prepare him well for returning kicks in the NFL. The Chiefs will try to find a place on special teams for Rees-Zammit, whether as a returner or a gunner.
“Dave (Toub) will have an opportunity to have him on special teams,” Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said, “and see where that goes.”
Toub already sounds smitten with his new Swiss-army-knife player.
“He's done above and beyond what I've expected,” Toub said. “He wants to be great and he's a great athlete.”
The NFL will experiment with XFL-style kickoff rules in 2024 and several teams are considering unique ways to use those rules to their advantage. Having a player like Rees-Zammit on the special teams unit could make the difference on some kick return plays.
Chiefs considering wild Harrison Butker, Justin Reid kickoff strategy
Louis Rees-Zammit isn't the only special teams-related gamble the Chiefs are considering in 2024.
Special teams coordinator Dave Toub and head coach Andy Reid have also spoken about a bold strategy that involves replacing their kicker.
The pair are heavily considering using safety Justin Reid for kickoffs instead of Harrison Butker because of the NFL's new kickoff rules.
Toub explained that the onus the new rules put on kickers to tackle could make the change worth it for the Chiefs.
“I like to have somebody who can go back and is able to make a tackle. Harrison Butker is able to make a tackle, but I really don't want him making tackles all year long,” Toub said. “If you watch the XFL, we watched every play, I bet kickers were involved in at least 25 to 40 percent of the tackles. In either trying to make a guy bounce back or making the tackle himself, or just missing the tackle. We don't want Butker in that situation. But he will be a kicker.”
Reid is used to tackling players from the safety position and he surprisingly has a pretty good leg for kicks as well.
Toub explains how playing Reid at kicker on those plays changes the math for the return team.
“He's an extra guy they're probably not accounting for. They know that that guy can go down and tackle. But a guy like Justin is a guy they have to worry about, they have to get him blocked and have to give up blocking somebody else. Now, it's about accuracy… You can't take too much risk because if you hit it out of bounds now you're giving up the ball at the 40,” Toub concluded.
