NFL clubs Cowboys, Seahawks, Dolphins, vying for former NRL Star Mailata | FinHeaven - Miami Dolphins Forums

NFL clubs Cowboys, Seahawks, Dolphins, vying for former NRL Star Mailata

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FORMER NRL under-20s star Jordan Mailata is set to make Australian sporting history by becoming the first rugby league forward to enter the NFL draft. The Sunday Mail can reveal Mailata will this week trial in front of scouts from all 32 NFL clubs as the likes of the Dallas Cowboys, Seattle Seahawks and Miami Dolphins ...
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https://www.rabbitohs.com.au/news/2018/03/14/Former-Rabbitoh-set-to-tackle-the-NFL/

With the NFL Scouting Combine in the rearview mirror, NFL scouts' next assignment will be attending pro days at colleges across the nation. One that will draw the interest of many of those scouts will take place in Tampa on Saturday, March 24, when Australian-born Jordan Mailata -- a recent rugby convert who moved from Sydney to the U.S. in January -- gets his chance to strut his stuff.
Mailata, a 20-year-old of Samoan origin who played professional rugby for the South Sydney Rabbitohs, is working on making the conversion to offensive tackle in the NFL. At 6-foot-8 and 345 pounds, he has the size to make that conversion, and his recently timed 5.00-second 40-yard dash would have ranked among the top five at his position at the NFL Combine, a hair better than potential first-round OT Connor Williams did it at 50 pounds lighter.
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http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap30...ordan-mailata-68-345-pounds-giving-nfl-a-shot
 
You can't coach size like that. He's worth a camp invite. Why not? Won't cost anything really. Our line is set with five starters; we can afford to develop a 20 year old if he shows potential.
 
Intriguing athleticism here. These late conversions rarely work - who was the guy in the Niners a couple years ago they signed from rugby or something?
 
I am a big NRL (National Rugby League) fan (Cronulla Sharks). Australians get excited about NRL players coming over here to make big money, but don't have much idea about the NFL. I will check this guy out further. Some of these boys with Samoan heritage are physically huge (and they're getting bigger every year with better nutrition). Some have feet so wide that they have to have shoes specially made for them, not to mention shirts, pants, etc.
Work off the assumption that this guy is physically very tough from playing rugby league but has zero exposure to the NFL game and its rules. He would never have seen a play book. He is like a big lump of clay that can be moulded - a very big lump of clay with power and athleticism.
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Investigated further from the links above. Jordan Mailata is training at the IMG Academy at Bradenton, FL in preparation for the NFL Draft. He's only 20 years old and played underage rugby league for South Sydney in Australia. He has not played a professional NRL game but was considered a terrific development prospect - the headline above is wrong, he's definitely not an NRL star. He has attracted attention from NFL scouts because he is so big (6'7" or 6'8" listed differently in different reports and 345 lbs). Note, he has dropped 28 kilograms ie 61 lbs from when he came to South Sydney (about 15 months ago), to now as he prepares for the NFL Draft. So he's huge and powerful but getting a lot leaner with the IMG Academy training. They have earmarked him for the O-line because of his size, but with a rugby league background he probably has decent ball catching skills. Considered a late round prospect - some team may draft him and take the time to develop him.
 
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DownUnderFin said:
Jarryd Hayne was the guy at the 49ers.
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Jarryd Hayne is a top established NRL player, who has played NRL at a high level for many years, who came over to the 49ers for one season and played special teams. This guy is not a professional established NRL star like Hayne. He's also probably around 120 lbs heavier than Jarryd Hayne.
BTW - Hayne still faces rape accusation from a girl he met in San Francisco. It's a big deal back in Australia media because of his high profile. He says it was consensual, she said it was extremely painful.
 
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