Two years after the 49ers experimented with adding a rugby player to their roster, the Philadelphia Eagles have decided to try the same thing.
The team announced Monday that they've signed Canadian rugby star Adam Zaruba to a three-year contract. The 6-foot-5 Zaruba will try to make the team as a tight end.
The signing comes one day after the Eagles had Zaruba in for a workout. The 26-year-old flew to Philadelphia on Friday and then had a tryout Sunday.
Although the Eagles have already officially announced the signing, coach Doug Pederson didn't have much to say when asked about his new tight end.
"We continue to bring guys in, work them out and see where they're at. And that's about all right now," Pederson said.
According to the Canadian Press, Zaruba can begin practicing with the Eagles as soon as he gets a work visa.
The rugby star, who hasn't played football since high school, seems pretty excited about getting a shot at an NFL roster.
"It will be a really awesome thing for me as an athlete," Zaruba told the Province before his tryout. "The window here is very small."
Of course, one reason Zaruba is excited to make the jump to the NFL is because you can make slightly more money than you can in rugby.
"No one would say money wouldn't be motivating," Zaruba said. "But this is an achievement [as an athlete] that I feel I'm capable of doing."
The rugby star shot to fame in March 2016 after he made an Odell Beckham-like one-handed catch during a match against Wales, which you can see below.
For Zaruba to make it in the NFL, he's going to have to earn a spot on an Eagles roster that's already pretty crowded at the tight end position with guys like Brent Celek, Zach Ertz, Trey Burton, Billy Brown and Anthony Denham.
If Zaruba ends up making the Eagles roster, he'll be hoping to do more damage in the NFL than Jarryd Hayne did. After signing with the 49ers in March 2015, Hayne only lasted a season before retiring from football and going back to rugby.
