The Players and Trainers Not Born in the USA

While the US is a nation of immigrants, the National Football League is largely led by American-born athletes. Only 5% of players are foreign-born, and the majority of them enter the game by going to university in the US. Genuine international figures are rare, and foreign coaches are particularly scarce, which makes James Cook’s story remarkable.

Cook’s Unlikely Path to the NFL

Cook has been in charge of athlete growth at the Browns organization. That’s an achievement in itself, but it’s extraordinary considering he was raised in Surrey, is in his twenties, and did not played professional sport. Cook discovered the NFL as a teenager while channel-flicking with his father and stumbled upon what he described as a “strange and amazing” sport. He started playing in his area and soon wanted to become the first NFL quarterback born in Europe. He got as far as playing for Team GB, but his plans to attend university in the US proved financially prohibitive.

“I was scooping popcorn, wiping seats, flipping burgers, doing a bit of everything. Whenever the NFL people needed me, I would adjust my schedule and assist. As a quarterback, the one thing I had was I could throw. So when they trained with players, I’d appear around London and throw the ball to them. I wasn’t paid, but they’d usually get me lunch.”

It was here that he encountered Durde, who had stints with the Carolina Panthers and Chiefs during his career before he set up the IPP programme in 2017 with two-time Super Bowl winner Umenyiora. When Durde became part of the coaching team at the Falcons, making history as the first UK full-time coach in NFL annals, Cook took over the IPP. “I had a lot of fun with it, coaching some remarkable guys,” he says. “We had Rees-Zammit; Travis Clayton, who got drafted by the Bills; Smyth, the kicker from Ireland who’s now with the Saints. I traveled to Down Under to train aspiring athletes from across the Pacific to introduce them to college football, like what I wanted to do.”

Transitioning to Coaching in the NFL

Similar to his predecessor before him, Cook made the jump from working with international athletes to joining the NFL. “The Browns called unexpectedly,” he says. “They had a multi-faceted position assisting rookies, maximising efficiency on the practice field, collaborating with physios, the coach and general manager. It’s a very active position, which is perfect for me. My experience was working with players from abroad who had never played the sport. Rookie newcomers also have to build structure and schedules: learning to take care of their health and handle a huge playbook. But also just being present for players. That’s the identical everywhere. And I enjoy that.”

Is being an Englishman who never play in the NFL a disadvantage? “It’s more of a perceived barrier than an real one,” states Cook. “I get a lot of reverse Ted Lasso comments and loads of players call me ‘bruv’ as they like that. It’s more about checking myself. I say ‘garbage can’ not ‘bin’. But we feel anxious or stressed about the same things and need help in the same ways. If players know you can assist them, they don’t care where you’re from or what accent. And when people know that you care, all the other stuff fades.”

Benefits of Being Beyond the US System

Coming from outside the American football world has its upsides. “I addressed in front of the whole squad very early on, and, as we walked out, one of our offensive linemen asked me about rugby with me as he loves it. You make those connections and build relationships. People are truly curious. NFL buildings are varied than many think. We have people from all sorts of backgrounds, a range of experiences. Our saying at IPP was: ‘Be uncommon – you are different so lean into it.’ It’s something to be proud of.”

The NFL has been more successful at producing foreign fans than nurturing global talent. Mailata, a ex- rugby player from Australia who won the Super Bowl earlier this year with the Eagles, is among the rare IPP players to have risen to the elite level.

Foreign Athletes and Their Journeys

Foreign players have typically been kickers, brought in from different sports. Bobby Howfield swapped soccer for Watford and Fulham for being a placekicker for the Denver Broncos and New York Jets; Mick Luckhurst graduated from rugby in England to the Atlanta Falcons team. If you do not want to be a special teams player and did not educated in the US college system, it’s extremely difficult to advance to the NFL.

Ayo Oyelola, a Londoner who played for Chelsea’s youth team before finding the sport at university, has achieved that. He competed in the CFL for the Blue Bombers before taking his talents to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers.

Maximilian Pircher’s story is just as unlikely. At over two meters and heavyweight, the from Italy was obviously not suited for his preferred games, football and handball, so started the NFL in his late teens. He stood out while playing for teams in Europe and Germany, as well as the Italy team, and was given a place on the IPP in that year.

A year later, he held the championship trophy as a member of the Rams training team. Pircher went on to have spells on the fringes at the Lions, Seattle Seahawks and Commanders, before he joined the Minnesota Vikings at the late summer. He has been popular in each team but is hasn’t had game time on the field. Is his status as a international player still a hurdle?

“It’s not really difficult, not an obstacle,” notes the 26-year-old. “We have players from various regions, so it isn’t an issue. Initially, they inquire: ‘You got an accent – what’s your background?’ But, after we have that figured out, we’re teammates. The Vikings have a really welcoming culture, a great squad, a great franchise.”

Despite spending the majority of practice with his fellow offensive linemen, Pircher has thrown himself into the social mix at his teams. “Naturally the offensive line is always close-knit because we are a unit and altogether one, but we have friends from all positions. My best friend, Landen Akers – my best man, in fact – played receiver at the Rams. The specialist from the Green Bay, Matt Orzech, is a close pal: we lived together for two years at the LA Rams. Quarterbacks, defenders, specialists: we’ve have to be there for each other.”

Motivating the Future

Pircher is conscious he symbolizes not only his home countries. “I would say all the countries beyond the United States. The more successful every IPP graduate does, the more young people who participate in Europe, in Europe, wherever, can see: ‘Oh it is possible – if I dedicate myself every day, I can get somewhere.’ I have a many kids hitting me up, seeking tips. It’s nice to encourage them to pursue what I’ve achieved.”

The IPP graduates are all invited to the US each year to coach the next wave of aspiring NFL internationals. “Almost all of us return