NFL Draft 2023: German hopes Metz and Zirir

In the 2023 NFL Draft, the NFL dream of many college talents will come true. Two German talents are also hoping for great success.

Their biggest football talents are on Thursday-Friday nights at 2023 NFL Draft actually Found a new team.

In the remaining two days, one player’s dream will come true with 228 players NFL– The team to be drafted.

Among the hundreds of college athletes awaiting a call-up from the NFL team are two German talents, Kilian Zerer and Lorenz Metz.

The two giants could follow in the footsteps of Sebastian Vollmer, who also linear attack He made a name for himself in the NFL.

Zierer has the best chance of being selected in the draft. The youngster from Hohenbrunn, a suburb of Munich, started playing only at the age of 16.

He previously played football, first as a striker and then as a goalkeeper. However, due to his massive size, he left the sport. After a visit to the United States, he became obsessed with soccer and went on to try out for the Munich Cowboys.

He started as a wide receiver before building muscle to play as a tight end. In his third season he finally moved up to the O-Line – and to the U19 Allgäu Comets.

“Even then, he was almost two meters tall, he was a big man,” recalls his former youth coach Matthias Schutz. Sports 1 The first meeting with the young hope.

During his time with the Comets, Zirer displayed the traits that have now brought him to the attention of the NFL. “He was a very ambitious player, who had a good understanding of football and excelled at working hard. He had the ‘no day off’ mentality (translation: no day off) that is in our sport,” says Schutz.

Thanks to the support of former NFL pro Bjorn Werner, he jumped to the US in 2018. At first it was only enough for Junior College of The Canyons in Santa Clarita, but after just six weeks he got a starting spot there.

“The best part is how awesome I am. I mean, the coaches said to me, ‘Forget everything you think you know, that’s how you do it.’ And since I don’t have any bad habits, they can do whatever they want with me. I did whatever they wanted and it worked. explained on the online portal in English Landing.

In his two seasons, he developed into the best junior college player. Many top programs such as Alabama, Florida State or TCU have been advertised for him – he has received a total of 15 scholarship offers.

His choice fell on the Auburn Tigers. “It’s an institution. The level is very high there,” Schutz says with appreciation.

Although Zerer missed his first season with a torn cruciate ligament, he was already in the starting lineup several times in the second year.

Last season, the 2.01m giant managed to take the next step: he took over the left tackle position – the most important job on the offensive line. He played in front of about 110,000 people who wanted to see the Tigers game at Penn State.

He could experience this atmosphere regularly in future years, because many recruiting experts doubt Zierer will be selected during the third day. “It would be great for him if he was recruited,” says Schutz, who is in the US on business over the introductory weekend and has announced his intention to do the telecast.

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His family, who have supported him so much on his path, should do the same. His younger brother Wilson, in particular, should be watching closely, as he currently plays for the Comets U16s.

“Physically, he is a young man who is very similar to his brother. He played his first year in football last year and has similar ambitions to his brother, ”explains the youth coach.

The most admired person is Lorenz Metz. With a height of 2.06 meters, he is slightly taller than his compatriot.

Like Zerer, he is also from Bavaria and is quite recent. Neuöttinger came to football at the age of 17 with the Kirchdorf Wildcats. Only there he caught a football fever, because the first experience three years ago with the Burghausen Crusaders did not convince him of the sport.

But in the small town of the inn he played himself to the fore and last but not least made an impression of his stature. Initially he played on the defensive line and chased down opposing midfielders before moving on in the United States.

says Christophe Renner, the Wildcats’ GFL2 head coach Sports 1-interview.

He coached the youngster in 2016 and 2017 — and nearly stopped him from jumping off to college. Ultimately, Metz was used in the GFL2, which caused him to lose his license, as he was no longer an amateur player from an NCAA standpoint.

But Rainer fought for his student. “He needed a letter of recommendation from me so he wouldn’t get banned. We got the cow off the ice because I took the blame.”

Thus, Metz, who used to play table tennis, was able to fulfill his dream of going to the United States. Thanks to a college tour, he had five offers to choose from and chose the Cincinnati Bearcats.

He was already on the field for his new team in his first year. Initially posted at tackle positions, he has been exclusively active as a guard for the past two seasons.

There he showed his potential, because in 2021 he was voted best team in the conference. “I am amazed that he has proven himself so well,” says his former coach.

Although Metz has the “body destined for sport” and the correct demeanor, the growth that has occurred in the meantime is causing him problems. “The cardiovascular system had to get used to it first,” says Renner.

But he leaves those problems behind, because Reiner openly praises his improved coordination and athletic performance.

However, it would be difficult for Metz to be drafted. So his 25-year-old is as much of a problem as his many injuries. Among other things, he underwent ankle surgery, causing him to miss six of the first seven games of the 2022 season. There are still some question marks in terms of the sport.

But he’ll likely end up as an undrafted free agent with a team. Reiner has important advice for Metz: “If he gets the chance, he should do something extraordinary. He should sparkle enough to get one of the 53 squad places or at least get into the practice squad, which would be the most logical way for me.”

Either way, there is great hope from a German perspective that Metz and Zierer will make the leap in NFL carrying out. It will only increase the football hype in Germany.