Football is uniquely American. All of the National Football League’s 32 teams are based in the United States, and Americans comprise 97.4 percent of all players. In comparison, 1 in 10 National Basketball Association and 1 in 9 Major League Baseball players are born outside the US, while about 85 percent of National Hockey League players are foreign-born.
The NFL has, however, been trying to promote the sport and improve player development in other countries since 2004, when it began the International Development Practice Squad Program. It now operates the International Player Pathway (IPP) program, which has introduced more than 30 players from foreign countries to the NFL since its inception in 2017.
There were more than 100 non-American players on NFL rosters as of the 2022 season. The following is a look at five.
1. Jakob Johnson (Germany)
Jakob Johnson is one of the more notable international players to have joined the NFL through the IPP program. A 6-foot-3, 255-pound fullback from Stuttgart, Germany, Johnson became just the third IPP graduate to record 1,000 career snaps during the 2021 season.
Johnson played football in his youth with the German Football League’s Stuttgart Scorpions. He later moved to Jacksonville, Florida, and played one season of high school football before being recruited to the University of Tennessee. Johnson returned to Germany and was playing for the Scorpions when he was assigned to the New England Patriots via the IPP program in 2019.
Johnson played in four regular-season games during the 2019 season and made the first reception of his career in Week 5. Johnson played all 16 games with the Patriots in the 2020 season and caught eight passes for 35. He scored the first touchdown of his career and the first for an IPP graduate in Week 2. He signed a one-year contract with the Las Vegas Raiders before the 2022 season.
2. Jordan Mailata (Australia)
Jordan Mailata is the second of the three IPP graduates to record 1,000 career snaps. The Samoan-born Australian tackle had a unique path to the NFL. He played professional rugby with the South Sydney Rabbitohs before participating in the IPP program in 2017. He wasn’t assigned to a roster that year but was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL Draft.
Mailata didn’t play at all in 2018 or 2019 due to injury and was kept on the practice squad. However, he had a breakout season in 2020, starting games at both right and left tackle. The Eagles named him starting left tackle after the 2020 season and signed him to a four-year, $64 million contract. Pro Football Focus listed Mailata’s contract as the best bargain in the NFL after the 2021 season.
“One year later, the deal is a bargain of the highest order,” commented Brad Spielberger. “Mailata earned an 87.4 overall grade with an 83.3 pass-blocking grade and 87.8 run-blocking grade, a true dancing bear with tremendous footwork for his size and lack of experience.”
3. Efe Obada (United Kingdom)
Born in the Netherlands and raised in London, England, Efe Obada was signed by the Dallas Cowboys from the London Warriors, an amateur football club in the United Kingdom, in 2015. He spent time on the Cowboys, Atlanta Falcons, and Kansas City Chiefs practice squads before joining the Carolina Panthers practice squad via the IPP program in 2017.
Obada was the first IPP graduate to earn a spot on a 53-man roster in 2018. He was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week in just his third career game after recording an interception and sack against the Cincinnati Bengals. Prior to signing with the Washington Commanders for the 2022 season, Obada had 62 tackles, 11 sacks, four defended passes, one interception, and one forced fumble through 52 career games.
4. Sammis Reyes (Chile)
Born in Talcahuano, Chile, Sammis Reyes became the first Chilean player in the NFL when he played for the Washington Commanders in 2021. Reyes was a multi-sport athlete in Chile before moving to the US at 13. He played basketball at the University of Tulane and was a member of the Chilean national basketball team. Despite having never played football, he earned a spot with Washington through the IPP program in 2021.
5. Cairo Santos (Brazil)
The first Brazilian player in the NFL, kicker Cairo Santos played college football at the University of Tulane and signed with the Kansas City Chiefs as a free agent in 2014. He played four seasons with the Chiefs and set several kicking records, including most field goals made in a game (7) and longest field goal made in the playoffs (49). He has since played for the Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Rams, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Tennessee Titans.