NFL
Sammis Reyes left out of Vikings roster at eleventh hour
The Chilean tight end was left out of the final roster that the Minnesota Vikings submitted to the NFL for the 2024/25 season.
Sammis Reyes received an unexpected blow in the last few hours that puts his continuity in the NFL at risk. The Minnesota Vikings, the club with which he signed a few months ago through the International Player Pathway Program (IPPP), has decided to leave him out of the roster for the new season.
Reyes, the first Chilean to reach the most important American football league in the world didn’t make the cut and was discarded in the first wave of losses reported by the team. All NFL teams have until Tuesday, August 27 to whittle their squads down to 53 players. The Vikings must reduce their from 91 players ahead of the deadline.
The first wave of cuts also included: Matt Corral, DeWayne McBride, Mo Ibrahim, Jaylin Williams, Neal Johnson, Justin Hall, Owen Porter, Chuck Filiaga, Doug Nester, Matt Cindric, Spencer Rolland, Tyler Manoa and A.J. Green II.
The information was expanded by Sports Illustrated, which pointed out that the group, including Reyes, “were not considered to have a high chance of securing a spot on the final roster.”
The problem for Sammis is that he received the news just a week before the start of the NFL regular season on 5 September, with the Vikings’ first game against the New York Giants the following Sunday. It essentially leaves him with no time to switch to another franchise.
Reyes joined the Vikings in May. It was the fourth franchise that the Chilean has represented during his career in the best American Football league in the world. He became the first Chilean-born player to star in the NFL, making his debut in October of that year against the New Orleans Saints - the first of 11 appearances.
Almost one year later, he was on the move again, joining the Chicago Bears’ practice squad, then in May 2023, he was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars. However, a blow to the head, during an August training caused an intracerebral hematoma, and effectively put paid to his time with the Jags. A few months later, the player insisted he had fully recovered and was hopeful of returning to the NFL. Minnesota gave him a lifeline but he is on the move without even having played a competitive match for them.