While the US is a nation of newcomers, the NFL is still dominated by US-born athletes. Just five percent of participants are foreign-born, and the majority of them enter the game by attending college in the US. Genuine outsiders are unusual, and coaches from abroad are especially scarce, which makes James Cook’s journey remarkable.
Cook’s Unlikely Path to the NFL
For the past six months, Cook has been in charge of player development at the Browns organization. That’s an achievement in itself, but it’s extraordinary considering he was raised in Surrey, is in his late 20s, and never played professional sport. Cook discovered the NFL as a 12-year-old while surfing channels with his dad and came across what he described as a “strange and amazing” game. He began participating locally and quickly wanted to become the first NFL quarterback from Europe. He got as far as playing for Team GB, but his dreams to go to college in the US were too expensive.
“I was scooping popcorn, cleaning seats, flipping burgers, handling a bit of everything. Whenever the NFL people wanted me, I would adjust my schedule and help out. As a quarterback, the key skill I had was I could throw. So when they trained with players, I’d show up around London and throw the ball to them. I wasn’t paid, but they’d often get me lunch.”
It was here that he met Aden Durde, who had periods with the Carolina Panthers and Chiefs during his playing days before he established the IPP program in that year with two-time Super Bowl winner Osi Umenyiora. When Durde joined the coaching team at the Falcons, making history as the first-ever UK permanent coach in NFL history, Cook took over the IPP. “I had a lot of fun with it, working with some remarkable guys,” he recalls. “We had Rees-Zammit; Travis Clayton, who was selected by Buffalo; Smyth, the specialist from Ireland who’s now with the New Orleans. I traveled to Down Under to work with younger players from across the Pacific to introduce them to the US college system, similar to what I wanted to do.”
Making the Leap to Coaching in the NFL
Like his predecessor before him, Cook transitioned from working with foreign players to joining the NFL. “Cleveland contacted me unexpectedly,” he says. “They had a hybrid role supporting rookies, maximising time on the training ground, working closely with medical staff, the coach and GM. It’s a very hands-on position, which is ideal for me. My experience was guiding players from abroad who had not played the sport. Rookie rookies also have to build habits and schedules: how to take care of their body and deal with a massive playbook. But also just being present for guys. That’s the same everywhere. And I love that.”
Is 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 get a lot of reverse Ted Lasso jokes and many players call me ‘bruv’ as they love that. It’s more about monitoring my language. I say ‘trash can’ not ‘bin’. But we get nervous or stressed about the similar things and need help in the same ways. If players know you can assist them, they aren’t concerned where you’re from or what accent. And when people realize that you care, all the rest melts away.”
Advantages of Coming From Outside the US System
Coming from beyond the American football world has its upsides. “I spoke in front of the entire team soon after joining, and, as we walked out, one of our linemen asked me about the sport with me as he loves it. You build those bonds and form friendships. People are genuinely intrigued. NFL organizations are varied than people think. We have staff from all sorts of backgrounds, a variety of experiences. Our saying at IPP was: ‘Be uncommon – you are unique so embrace it.’ It’s something to celebrate.”
The NFL has been better at producing foreign fans than developing global talent. Mailata, a former rugby player from Sydney who claimed the Super Bowl earlier this year with the Philadelphia Eagles, is one of the few IPP players to have risen to the very top.
International Players and Their Paths
International athletes have usually been specialists, recruited from other football codes. Howfield exchanged soccer for English clubs for becoming a kicker for the Denver Broncos and Jets; Mick Luckhurst graduated from rugby in St Albans to the Atlanta Falcons team. If you aren’t aiming to be a kicker and did not educated in the American system, it’s very challenging to make the leap to the NFL.
Oyelola, a Londoner who played for Chelsea’s academy before discovering the sport at university, has achieved that. He competed in the Canadian Football League for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers before moving to the Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Maximilian Pircher’s story is equally unlikely. At 6ft 7in and heavyweight, the from Italy was obviously not suited for his favoured sports, soccer and the sport, so took up the NFL in his teenage years. He impressed while representing teams in Europe and Germany, as well as the Italy team, and was given a place on the IPP in 2021.
The following year, he held the championship trophy as a part of the Rams training team. Pircher went on to have spells on the periphery at the Detroit Lions, Seattle Seahawks and Washington Commanders, before he signed with the Vikings at the late summer. He has been well-liked in every locker room but is yet to see game time on the gridiron. Is his status as a international player still a challenge?
“It isn’t difficult, not a barrier,” says the player. “We have players from all different states, so it doesn’t really matter. At first, they inquire: ‘You speak differently – what’s your background?’ But, once we have that figured out, we’re all friends. The Minnesota have a really inclusive culture, a great squad, a top franchise.”
Despite spending most of training with his fellow offensive linemen, Pircher has immersed himself in the social mix at his clubs. “Obviously the O-line is consistently close-knit because we are a unit and united, but we have friends from every position group. My best friend, Landen Akers – my best man, in fact – played receiver at the LA. The specialist from the Packers, Orzech, is a close pal: we lived together for two years at the LA Rams. QBs, defenders, special teams: we’ve got to be there for each other.”
Motivating the Next Generation
Pircher is conscious he symbolizes not only his home countries. “In my view every nation outside the US. The more successful every IPP graduate performs, the greater number of young people who participate in Italy, in Germany, wherever, can see: ‘It can be done – if I put the work in every day, I can succeed.’ I have a lot of youngsters hitting me up, seeking tips. It’s rewarding to encourage them to pursue what I’ve experienced.”
The program alumni are welcomed to the US annually to coach the next wave of aspiring NFL internationals. “Virtually everyone of us return
