No helmets, no pads: NFL stars in awe of Val's highlights

As he prepares for his first match on US soil in seven years, Dragons star Val Holmes has revealed how his former NFL team-mates couldn’t get enough of his rugby league highlights.

Holmes, who will return from a hamstring injury in the season opening clash with the Bulldogs at Allegiant Stadium, played four matches for New York Jets in 2019 and spent the season as a member of the franchise’s practice squad.

“I was in the running back class and the boys just wanted to see my highlights on You Tube. That’s all they wanted to do,” Holmes said.

“They couldn’t believe that we didn’t wear helmets and pads to protect ourselves. They have grown up wearing helmets and pads as protection and then they see 13 blokes going at it without that protection, so that was something that really stood out to them.

The other thing was that they obviously have an offense and a defence and are on either one or the other, whereas for us we have to attack and defend.

"If you are a receiver or a tightend, in offense you are just doing 40m sprints and then you get a bit of a break, go again, have another break, go again, and then you might be off the field when the defence comes on.

"In our game, if you are an outside back you have to play for 80 minutes straight, you are tackling and you have got to make decisions straight away - with the ball and without the ball."

Although he returned to the NRL in 2020 with the Cowboys before joining St George Illawarra in 2024, Holmes remains in contact with some of his former team-mates in New York.

Washington Commanders linebacker Frankie Luvu reached out to him last year to swap his No.4 jersey for the one Holmes wore for Queensland in State of Origin.

"It was probably one of my highest achievements in my career," Holmes said.

"I am glad I gave it a crack and had a chance to meet the guys I did, and to train with players I used to watch on TV or even when you are playing Madden.

“To be able to rub shoulders and train with those guys, some of whom will be Hall of Famers, was pretty special.

“I got to play at different stadiums, I got to travel with the team and I got to see the highs and lows of the NFL, with blokes being cut week-in and week-out and new guys coming in.

"It is a very cut-throat sport and to able to witness it first hand and get amongst it was a great experience."

Holmes said the most difficult thing to get used to was wearing a helmet and pads, and he has no doubt that there are other NRL stars who could make it the NFL, including some who will be playing in Vegas on the weekend.

The 30-year-old nominated Knights fullback Kalyn Ponga and Bulldogs centre Stephen Crichton as players who are likely to wow American fans at Allegiant Stadium. 

"You lose most of your peripheral vision once the helmet is on and it weighs just under 2kg so adjusting to all of that was pretty hard but we have got some freakish athletic tough players that can move in any direction," he said.

"The way that KP and Critta move, they will probably be gobsmacked by it. I'm sure that once KP puts on a masterclass over there they will be frothing that."

Holmes played on the wing in Cronulla's 2016 premiership winning team and for Australia in the 2017 World Cup but since his return from NFL he has developed into one of the game's best defensive centres.

“I do think it helped me physically and mentally," he said. "Physically, I felt like I was in the best shape of my career.

"I got to work on my speed, work on my weight lifting, because they take that very seriously, plus their diet plans and the chefs they have cooking you really nice food.