The Players and Coaches Not Born in the USA
While the United States is a country of newcomers, the National Football League is still led by American-born athletes. Just 5% of participants are born abroad, and the majority of them enter the sport by going to college in the US. True international figures are rare, and coaches from abroad are particularly scarce, which makes James Cook’s journey exceptional.
Cook’s Unlikely Journey to the League
Cook has been in charge of player development at the Cleveland Browns. This is an accomplishment in itself, but it’s extraordinary considering he was raised in England, is in his late 20s, and never participated in professional sport. Cook first saw the NFL as a 12-year-old while channel-flicking with his father and came across what he called a “weird and wonderful” game. He began participating in his area and quickly aspired to become the first NFL QB from Europe. He progressed to playing for Great Britain, but his plans to go to college in the US were too expensive.
“I was scooping popcorn, wiping seats, making burgers, handling a bit of everything. Any time the NFL people wanted me, I would switch my schedule and assist. Being a quarterback, the one thing I had was I could throw. So when they worked out with players, I’d show up all over London and throw the ball to them. I wasn’t paid, but they’d usually get me lunch.”
It was here that he encountered Aden Durde, who had stints with the Carolina Panthers and Chiefs during his playing days before he established the International Player Pathway programme in 2017 with two-time championship winner Umenyiora. When Durde joined the coaching team at the Falcons, making history as the first-ever British permanent coach in NFL history, Cook assumed control of the IPP. “I enjoyed a lot of fun with it, working with some really interesting players,” he says. “We had Rees-Zammit; Clayton, who was selected by Buffalo; Charlie Smyth, the kicker from Ireland who’s now with the New Orleans. I went to Down Under to work with younger players from around the Pacific region to introduce them to college football, similar to what I wanted to do.”
Transitioning to Coaching in the NFL
Like his predecessor before him, Cook made the jump from working with foreign players to coaching in the NFL. “Cleveland contacted me unexpectedly,” he says. “They had a multi-faceted position assisting rookies, maximising time on the training ground, working closely with medical staff, the head coach and general manager. It’s a very active position, which is perfect for me. My background was guiding players from abroad who had never played the sport. Rookie rookies also have to establish structure and schedules: learning to look after their body and deal with a huge playbook. But also just being present for guys. That’s the same everywhere. And I love that.”
Does being an Brit who never play in the NFL hold him back? “It’s more of a imagined barrier than an real one,” states Cook. “I’ve had a lot of Lasso-style comments and loads of players refer to me as ‘bruv’ as they like that. It’s more about checking myself. I say ‘trash can’ not ‘rubbish bin’. But we get nervous or stressed about the similar things and need help in the identical ways. If players know you can assist them, they don’t care where you’re from or what accent. And when players realize that you are invested, all the other stuff melts away.”
Advantages of Coming From Beyond the US System
Originating from beyond the NFL bubble has its upsides. “I addressed in front of the whole squad soon after joining, and, as we walked out, one of our linemen wanted to talk rugby with me as he loves it. You make those connections and build relationships. People are truly intrigued. NFL organizations are varied than many think. We have staff from various origins, a range of experiences. Our saying at IPP was: ‘Stand out – you are unique so embrace it.’ It’s something to celebrate.”
The NFL has been better at attracting international supporters than developing foreign players. Mailata, a former rugby league player from Australia who claimed the championship recently with the Philadelphia Eagles, is among the rare IPP graduates to have risen to the elite level.
International Athletes and Their Paths
International athletes have typically been specialists, brought in from different sports. Howfield exchanged soccer for Watford and Fulham for becoming a kicker for the Broncos and Jets; Luckhurst graduated from rugby in England to the Atlanta Falcons team. If you do not want to be a kicker and did not educated in the US college system, it’s very challenging to advance to the NFL.
Ayo Oyelola, a native of London who was part of Chelsea’s youth team before finding the sport at university, has achieved that. He competed in the Canadian Football League for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers before taking his talents to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Maximilian Pircher’s story is equally improbable. At 6ft 7in and 23 stone, the from Italy was clearly not suited for his favoured sports, football and handball, so took up American football in his late teens. He impressed while playing for clubs in Austria and Europe, as well as the national side, and was given a spot on the IPP in 2021.
The following year, he held the Vince Lombardi Trophy as a part of the Rams training team. Pircher subsequently had spells on the periphery at the Detroit Lions, Seattle Seahawks and Commanders, before he joined the Vikings at the end of August. He has been well-liked in each team but is hasn’t had action on the gridiron. Is his status as a foreigner still a hurdle?
“It isn’t difficult, not a barrier,” says the 26-year-old. “We have players from all different states, so it doesn’t really matter. At first, they ask: ‘You got an accent – where are you from?’ But, once we clarify that, we’re all friends. The Minnesota have a really inclusive environment, a great squad, a great organization.”
Although spending most of training with his other linemen, Pircher has immersed himself in the team dynamics at his teams. “Naturally the O-line is consistently close-knit because we are a unit and altogether one, but we have friends from all positions. My best friend, Akers – my wedding witness, in fact – played receiver at the LA. The specialist from the Green Bay, Matt Orzech, is a really good friend: we shared a home for a while at the Rams. Quarterbacks, defenders, special teams: we’ve got to be there for each other.”
Motivating the Future
Pircher is conscious he represents more than just his home countries. “In my view all the countries beyond the US. The better every IPP graduate performs, the more youth who participate in Europe, in Europe, wherever, can see: ‘Oh it is possible – if I put the work in consistently, I can succeed.’ I have a lot of youngsters contacting me, seeking tips. It’s nice to encourage them to pursue what I’ve experienced.”
The program alumni are all invited to Florida annually to train the next wave of aspiring NFL outsiders. “Virtually everyone of us return
