Christian Wade believes that Louis Rees-Zammit will go to a “dark place” as he attempts to become an NFL player.
The 22-year-old announced this week that he would be ditching his Gloucester and Wales rugby union career in order to join the NFL International pathway, which could see him sign for a major US team.
Wade is a player who went the other way, crossing over from gridiron to Racing 92 in France, and he told Instant Casino that pre-season is a brutal experience.
“You do have to go to a dark place. It is not about going to a dark place once, it is for months and years,” he began.
“The pathway programme will be tough, but that is the easy part. Once you get picked up by a team, or if you get picked up, then that is when the hard work starts and gets harder and harder.
“There will be a mini-camp where everyone is fighting for a job and their livelihood. It is not like you have a two year contract and you can chill for a bit and you’re getting paid.
“In the NFL it is the true American dream.
“He will get paid weekly or every two weeks. But nothing is guaranteed. You can get cut at any time. Once you get through you have five weeks off then you go into pre-season. And that is pre-season from hell.
“You start at 7 am and finish at 9 pm. It is crazy.”
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