The Washington Football Team has made a bevy roster moves since the end of the 2020 season. In the month of March alone, they signed quarterback Ryan Fitzpatick, cornerback Darryl Roberts, and wide receivers Curtis Samuels and Adam Humphries. Their most intriguing move, however, comes from a player with no prior football experience.
On April 13, 2021, they signed tight end Sammis Reyes to their roster. With an intent to expand on the recent successes of the WFT—including being the NFC East and almost defeating the eventual Super Bowl champions Tampa Bay Buccaneers—Reyes has the potential to be a key difference maker.
Although Reyes has never played for a football team before, he has always been a strong athlete. In Chile, Reyes was a dominant basketball player and was on youth national teams. When he was in high school, Reyes came to the United States with the hopes of one day pursuing a career as a professional basketball player.
After high school, Reyes went to the University of Hawaii, but after suffering a devastating ACL injury, he transferred to Palm Beach State College. There, Reyes dominated and subsequently transferred to Tulane University.
Reyes finished the very end of his college basketball career at Loyola University in Louisiana. Sadly, Reyes did not make it to the NBA, but many people urged him to switch to football and try to make the NFL, as he had the speed, size, strength, and work ethic to make it into the league.
In an NFL International Pathway Program, Reyes was one of the eleven international prospects selected; these prospects would spend months training with NFL programs to give these people the opportunity to be one of the four players put on an NFL team’s practice squad. Reyes showed out and at his Pro Day at the University of Florida, the Washington Football Team signed him before the NFL International Pathway Program even ended because of his exceptional performance.
At 260 pounds and almost 6’6, Reyes has the size to dominate as a TE. Furthermore, this size does not come at the expense of his mobility, as evidenced by his 4.65 second 40-yard dash and his 40” vertical jump and 10’5” broad jump. He also demonstrated exceptional strength, performing 31 bench press repetitions.
Since he has no experience playing in the NFL, there are some people that think Reyes will not be able to adjust to the NFL. “Reyes has to really step it up if he wants to play well in the NFL,” an anonymous senior at Poolesville High School said, “[As] a Washington Football Team fan, I wish him the best of luck.”
For the most part, many students in Montgomery County who are fans of the WFT are optimistic about Reyes’ future. As his salary and signing bonus was relatively low for an NFL player, there is little downside to giving Reyes an opportunity.
An anonymous junior at Walter Johnson High School said: “I think Reyes is really going to do well, he will have good teammates to help him adapt to the NFL. His contract not being so expensive makes there to be no reason to not let Reyes prove himself at the professional level.”
While it’s yet to be seen how his talent will translate to the field, Reyes has currently showcased himself as a worthy addition by his athletic accomplishments, size, Pro Day statistics, and work ethic.
Article by Darius Kamrad of Walter Johnson High School
Photo Courtesy of WashingtonFootball.com