Chargers sign IPP TE, former rugby player Jordan Petaia

Jordan Petaia was the youngest person ever to play

Late Wednesday evening, the Chargers announced the signing for former Australian rugby player Jordan Petaia to the roster. Petaia joins the Bolts as a tight end through the NFL’s International Player Pathway.

The last player to join the Chargers through the IPP program was defensive tackle CJ Okoye who spent the 2022 and 2023 seasons on the practice squad.

Petaia (pronounced peh-TIE-uh) has been training for the past 10 weeks at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida in preparation for an IPP pro day held at the University of South Florida on March 26.

At the pro day, the Werribee, Victoria native measured in at 6’3 and 227 pounds. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.58 seconds and had an incredible vertical jump of 40 1/2”.

As a rugby player, Petaia starred for his home country where he became the youngest Austrailian player to appear in a World Cup in 2019 at just 18 years old. In all, he appeared in two World Cups (2019 & 2023, the first in Japan and the second in France). Petaia played his club rugby for the Queensland Reds where he made his debut in 2018.

The NFL’s International Player Pathway was established in 2017 in order to give athletes from around the world the opportunity to pursue their dreams of playing at the highest level of football. While most players who end in the NFL through the program do not find much success, one of the most-successful former rugby players to try his hand at American football is Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata who was a late-round draft pick turned top-three left tackle in the NFL.

*please note the RAS chart below incorrectly lists Petaia as a running back