VIDEO: Bills RB and Former Rugby Star Christian Wade Breaks Free for 65-Yard TD on 1st NFL Touch
By Michael Luciano
Apparently once you're a rugby star, becoming an NFL running back really isn't that hard to do after all. Former Wasps star and England international Christian Wade made the most of his first touch as a member of the Buffalo Bills, scampering untouched to the end zone for a 65-yard touchdown run. Wade's first touchdown put the Bills up 23-13 over the Colts.
Wade, who was allocated to the Bills as part of the NFL's International Pathways Program, is following in the footsteps of Jarryd Hayne, an Australian star who had an unsuccessful one-year stint with the San Francisco 49ers in 2015.
While Hayne was the trailblazer, Wade might be the better player, as the first carry he ever got in his life went for six. On the run, he showed off the vision and speed that made him such a terrific rugby player.
The old trend for finding stars in other sports is to draft college basketball power forwards and make them tight ends. The hip new movement is to take rugby players like Wade and make them into running backs.