Hackney prop Dave Lewis told BBC Sport it took Kelce – a former center, an offensive lineman, whose main role is to snap the ball to the quarterback and then protect him, each play – a while to get used to rugby’s rules.
“We got a message from our club captain saying our local rivals were coming down with two ex-NFL players, but we didn’t know anything else about it,” Lewis said.
“With the rules, he got there. At the very start, he sort of went round the back of a ruck and picked the ball up, which he obviously was then penalised for.
“I handed him off at one point and put him on his back in front of his team-mates and all of our fans as well. I hope they release that footage because I’ll be dining out on it forever if they do.
“He just got back up and absolutely smashed me later on when he had the ball, running through me. So, I don’t think he has an ego. I think he’s just up for the physicality of it all.”
Lewis’ team-mate Scott said he thought Kelce picked the game up pretty quickly.
“He’s a pretty intimidating figure,” Scott added. “Very broad shoulders, powerful legs. They were using him as a number 8, which, I think, is the perfect position for him.
“There were a few intricacies, like how he was carrying the ball and where he was in the scrum, but he clearly knew what he was. He didn’t look out of place at all.
“In rugby you are taught to tackle at an angle, and go at people’s shoulders. He was a lot more front on, like ‘OK, route one, I’m just gonna go straight at anyone that came out’.”
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