The Philadelphia Eagles ventured north of the border this week and have signed Canadian rugby sensation, Adam Zaruba, to a three-year contract. The deal was announced earlier this afternoon, with confirmation coming directly from the team's official website and Zaruba's social media account.
Posting to Instagram, the 26-year-old from Vancouver shared his excitement regarding the new opportunity and thanked his friends and family for support. "Today marks the start of a new journey," he told followers. "I am so incredibly thankful for this opportunity and very excited to be an Eagle. I don't know how long it will last, but I will cherish every single day and try to be better than the day before. Many people were involved in making this possible and I just wanted to say thank you from the bottom of my heart. Time to go to work!"
Zaruba landed a tryout with the team this past Sunday, and initially caught the attention of NFL scouts due to a string of impressive performances for his Canadian national rugby squad. This isn't the first time these two worlds have collided. In 2012, the New England Patriots inked a deal with USA rugby player, Nate Ebner, to help man their special teams. Ebner has since proven to be a success, remaining at the club since his debut and capturing All-Pro honours last year.
Meanwhile, Zaruba comes to his new NFC East squad with a solid competitive track record and an impressive frame of 6-5, 265 pounds. This makes the football convert his team's biggest tight end. Perhaps the only downside of the situation, however, is that Adam has not played the sport since high-school. Eagles training camp begins this week, and the star Canadian athlete will be able to join the squad after sorting out his worker visa.
