He looks like a glitch in the matrix. Seriously. If you’ve ever fallen down the YouTube rabbit hole of jordan mailata rugby highlights, you know exactly what I’m talking about. You see this massive human being, a literal giant among men, moving with the kind of light-footed grace that shouldn't be physically possible for someone weighing nearly 350 pounds.
He isn't just big. He is "make-professional-athletes-look-like-toddlers" big.
Before he was the cornerstone of the Philadelphia Eagles' offensive line, and long before he was winning Super Bowl LIX in 2025, Jordan Mailata was a kid from Bankstown, New South Wales, trying to make it in the brutal world of Australian rugby league. People see the NFL success now and think it was inevitable. It wasn’t. It was actually kind of a desperate pivot born out of being "too big" for his first love.
Why Jordan Mailata rugby highlights still go viral today
Most rugby players are tough. They’re fit. They’re fast. But they usually aren't 6-foot-8 and 346 pounds. When Mailata put on a South Sydney Rabbitohs jersey for their U20s side, he looked like he’d been photoshopped into the game.
The clips that everyone shares—the ones that eventually ended up on the desk of NFL scouts—usually show the same thing: Mailata taking a hit-up, three or four defenders hanging off his waist like laundry on a line, and him just... keeping. Going.
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There's one specific highlight where he catches the ball near the sideline, fends off a defender with a "stiff-arm" that looks more like a demolition crane, and then sprints—actually sprints—for a try. It’s terrifying. It’s also the reason Jeff Stoutland and the Eagles coaching staff saw a future All-Pro instead of just a project.
The South Sydney Rabbitohs era
Honestly, the crazy part is that Mailata wasn't even a "star" in the way we think of them now. He was a backup. He was playing for the Rabbitohs’ U20s affiliate and working a 5 a.m. shift on a demolition crew just to make ends meet. He was literally breaking walls with a sledgehammer before going to practice to break defensive lines.
But he had a problem. Rugby league is an aerobic nightmare. You have to run. A lot. We’re talking 80 minutes of constant movement, getting back 10 meters every single tackle, and sprinting back into the line.
- Weight: He was tipping the scales at 166kg (about 365 lbs) at one point.
- The Heart Scare: At 17, he collapsed during a workout. Doctors diagnosed him with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome. He needed two heart surgeries.
- The Ultimatum: South Sydney coaches told him he needed to drop 15kg to stay competitive.
Mailata looked at them and basically said it was impossible. He was already at 10% body fat. He wasn't fat; he was just built like a titan. His agent, Chris Orr, saw the writing on the wall. If rugby wouldn't have him because of his size, he’d find a sport that worshipped it.
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The "Monster" on the tape: What NFL scouts actually saw
When you watch jordan mailata rugby highlights, pay attention to his feet. That’s what the NFL guys loved. Most guys that size have "heavy feet"—they plod. Mailata had the footwork of a tight end.
Former Jets GM Joe Douglas famously called the YouTube videos an "eye-opener." It wasn't just the strength; it was the "Marshawn Lynch-like" way he finished runs. In rugby, you don't have pads. Every hit Mailata took in those highlights was skin-on-skin, and he was the one leaving people "bandaged and bruised," as the old scouting reports put it.
Breaking down the transition
The jump from the North Sydney Bears (where he played reserve grade) to the NFL’s International Player Pathway (IPP) program is one of the wildest leaps in sports history. Imagine never playing a single snap of organized football and then being expected to block guys like Micah Parsons.
He didn't even know how to put the pads on at first. He had to be taught the "Stoutland University" way—learning pass protection sets, how to use his 11-inch hands to steer defenders, and how to harness that rugby "grunt" into a consistent NFL punch.
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Life after the highlights: A Super Bowl champion
Fast forward to 2026. Jordan Mailata isn't just "the rugby guy" anymore. He's an elite, second-team All-Pro tackle. He’s the guy who helped pave the way for Saquon Barkley’s historic 2,000-yard season in 2024.
He’s also a Super Bowl champion. When the Eagles beat the Chiefs 40–22 in Super Bowl LIX, Mailata became the first Australian to actually start and win a Super Bowl. Jesse Williams won one with Seattle years ago, but he was on IR. Mailata was in the trenches for every snap.
He’s also become a bit of a cultural icon. Between his singing (the man can seriously belt out some Chris Stapleton) and his massive $66 million contract extension, he’s the ultimate "what if" success story.
What if he had actually lost those 15 kilos and stayed in Sydney? He’d probably be a decent prop in the NRL, maybe a cult hero for the Rabbitohs. Instead, he’s one of the most dominant forces in American sports.
Actionable Insights: Lessons from the Mailata tape
If you're an athlete or just a fan looking at these clips, there are a few things to take away from his journey:
- Embrace the outlier traits: The very thing that made Mailata "unfit" for rugby (his massive size) made him a multi-millionaire in the NFL. If you don't fit the mold of one system, find the system that was built for you.
- Footwork is king: Whether it’s rugby league or the NFL, your power comes from the ground up. Mailata’s rugby highlights are a masterclass in keeping your base stable while moving at high speeds.
- The "Stoutland" approach: Mailata succeeded because he was a "blank slate" who was willing to be coached. He didn't have bad habits because he had no habits.
If you want to see the footage for yourself, just search for his 2017 South Sydney Rabbitohs highlight reel. It’s the one where he’s wearing number 15 or 16 and looks like he’s playing against middle schoolers. It’s the purest evidence you’ll ever see that sometimes, a player is just too big for their own country.