Super Bowl 2023: Jordan Mailata’s remarkable journey to NFL stardom

Australia has one big stake in the Super Bowl. It’s Jordan Mailata, or the ‘tsunami of power’ as some call him. From NRL rejections to car explosions on NFL Draft night, it’s some journey.

It is Australia’s version of Jerry Maguire.

The sports agent who conjured a plan for Jordan Mailata to test himself in American football has revealed how the Bankstown behemoth rejected a $10,000 contract at the North Sydney Bears to become a $64 million sensation in the NFL.

As Mailata prepares for a dream Super Bowl debut for Philadelphia against Kansas City on Monday week in Arizona, veteran NRL agent Chris Orr has outlined the head-spinning journey that has taken the Sydney-born giant from NRL reject to NFL superstar.

NFL commentators are lauding Mailata as a “tsunami of power”.

Jordan Mailata is shooting for a Super Bowl ring. Picture: Getty Images

Mailata’s agent Chris Orr. Picture: Jerad Williams

And Orr knows Mailata’s story better than anybody … because he opened the NFL door, helping construct, devise and implement the process that turned Mailata’s sporting mirage into NFL reality.

Over the next decade, industry experts estimate Mailata is on track to earn more than $300 million in the NFL as one of the highest-paid offensive tackles in the sport. His current four-year, $64 million deal ranks Mailata 14th among 163 offensive tackles in the NFL.

Virtually broke five years ago, Mailata’s salary of $7.6 million this year at Philadelphia will skyrocket to $21 million in 2024 - a pay rise of 176 per cent.

“What Jordan has done is truly remarkable,” Orr said.

“I had the contacts to open the door, but Jordan charged through it and did it all himself.”

THE GRAND PLAN

Big projects always start small.

For Mailata, the ramparts for an NFL revolution were built at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in the Sydney beachside suburb of Coogee.

Traditionally a meeting spot for the NSW Origin team, the monstrous Mailata walked through the hotel doors. It was late spring in 2017. He was still a free agent at South Sydney and fast hurtling towards a contractual dead end.

Pacific Sports Management agent George Ghazal accompanied Mailata to meet with PSM director Orr. After one look at the 203cm, 158kg Polynesian powerhouse, the seeds were sown.

“We were struggling to get him re-signed at Souths,” Orr recalls.

“George (Ghazal) came to me and said, ‘What do you think we do?’ I said after watching footage, ‘Let’s meet and work out some ideas.’

“The minute Jordan walked into the hotel at Coogee, I nearly fell over. I couldn’t believe the size of the bloke. He was a monster.

Jordan Mailata at the Rabbitohs in 2017.

“I looked at George and said, ‘Right, we have to get Jordan to have a crack at the NFL’.

Mailata shot a quizzical look. A battler from Bankstown who was only at the junior level at the Rabbitohs. Surely no hope?

“I asked Jordan his thoughts and he was lukewarm to be honest,” Orr said.

“He wasn’t sure he could get there and I think people around him had similar concerns, but I said, ‘Let’s start with step one. We’ll cut up a highlights package, we’ll get some footage and we’ll get some photos.

“There was an awkward moment where I said, ‘Mate, can you take your shirt off and put your arms out’.

“I rang Mark Waller from the NFL and he directed me to call Aden (Durde) from the NFL pathways, I sent him footage and photos and thought let’s see what happens from here.”

THE STRUGGLE

Mindful of Mailata’s concerns, Orr tried one last sweep of the NRL. He and Ghazal called all 16 clubs. The response didn’t match Mailata’s passion for the NRL.

“Jordan wasn’t sure about getting on the plane to the US, so we went through every club in the NRL to see if we could find something for him,” Orr said.

“The best my agent (George) came up with for Jordan was a $10,000 deal playing reserve grade for North Sydney. On top of that, a possible opportunity to work on a construction site in Sydney while pushing again for an NRL contract.

“Michael Maguire (then Souths coach) helped me out a lot in convincing Jordan.

“Michael was really blunt. He said, ‘Jordan, unless you get under 130kg like Nelson Asofa-Solomona, you won’t be able to handle the endurance and the vigorous demands of the NRL.

“I said, ‘Well, ‘Madge’ (Maguire), to do that, he will be a short front-rower because we have to cut him off at the hips.

“Unfortunately the game wasn’t suited to his natural size.

“That’s when Madge said, ‘Jordan, why don’t you listen to ‘Orry’ and consider having a crack at the NFL.

“Madge was a big supporter of Jordan’s journey and took a keen interest in his progression.”

Mailata after defeating the San Francisco 49ers 31-7 in the NFC Championship Game. Picture: Getty Images

THE TURNING POINT

It was just before Christmas in 2017. A month after Mailata’s meeting with Orr.

The NFL’s development coach at the International Player Pathway program, Aden Durde, was sitting in a carpark in London waiting to put a potential British recruit through an American Football workout.

A video popped up on Durde’s phone. It was a 170-second clip of Mailata’s highlights playing for Souths’ under-20s side. Belting rivals. Sending opponents flying. Carrying six fully-grown men like the big kid in the under-8s. Durde called immediately.

“We set up a chance to meet in LA (Los Angeles),” Durde said. “We did a workout and Jordan was great.”

His 40-yard dash was 5.12 seconds.

“Jordan nailed the workout,” Orr said. “So we had to come back to America and they made us an offer to be on the pathway program.

“Like all new things it came with a gamble, we had to fund our way over for the workout and prepare for the training.”

THE GAMBLE

Mailata’s explosive, brutish physical presence masks his softer intellectual side.

He can play piano and guitar. When Philadelphia released a Christmas carols album last December, producers were so blown away by Mailata’s voice they began running around the studio punching the air.

That intellect was vital at the IPP. When he left Australia on January 14, 2018, Mailata’s physical gifts alone would not be enough to crack the NFL.

Mailata in high school.

“Jordan has succeeded in the NFL because of his intelligence,” Orr said.

“Jordan is built for American football. He is six foot eight and 365 pounds. He was too big for the NRL. He was never going to handle the endurance. But for the NFL, as an explosive big guy, he is perfect for it.

“But you can’t just be big to play NFL. You need intellect. He was about to enrol in criminology at university when we decided to try the NFL.

“The pathway program was outstanding. They saturated him with information. Educating him was so important because he knew nothing about American football.

“He is very smart and has an ability to pick up and absorb a lot of information. An NFL playbook is two inches thick, so Jordan had the application to process all the tactics and information.”

THE BREAKTHROUGH

Orr vividly recalls the manic beauty of April 28, 2018. The day Mailata was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles on the back of zero American football experience - just 20 weeks after walking away from rugby league.

“I had a discussion at the time with those running the IPP about the draft route as they were in two minds about it, but in the end they decided to take the draft path,” Orr said.

“Jordan became the first player in the history of the NFL draft to be drafted without playing a single snap of American football.

“I was there on draft day. I flew over. My education of the draft was watching the Kevin Costner movie on the way over Draft Day.

“It was very exciting and very emotional. We went through the rounds, one, two, three, four.

“Then it got to round seven and some people wanted to see if he would go free agency.

“I was taking calls from clubs and it was all happening so quickly. But I was lucky to have the support of the NFL staff who simply advised me that if the clubs calling really want him, then you demand they draft him and that was the message I was reinforcing.”

An estimated nine clubs called, including the Chargers, Rams, Detroit and Chicago Bears.

“Then Philadelphia called,” Orr recalls.

Philadelphia general manager Howie Roseman said simply: “You’re an Eagle, bro.”

Mailata broke down. He was draft pick No. 233. He still has a small white paper card listing the transaction as a keepsake.

Mailata shakes hands with fans after he was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the seventh round of the NFL football draft. Picture: via AP

“When that call came through to Jordan, it was so emotional watching it unfold,” Orr said. “It was like something out of a movie.”

But amid the celebration, there was carnage. Mailata’s car exploded on the drive home.

“After leaving the draft, we had this massive 4WD heading home and it suddenly catches on fire,” Orr recalls.

“We had no idea what had happened.

“So we had to pull over on the highway. Here we are with Australia’s next NFL player and this car is up in flames with smoke going everywhere.

“Out of nowhere, a big black van pulled over and a guy gave us a lift home.”

THE WEAPON

Since his NFL debut on September 13, 2020, Mailata has become a regular for Philadelphia over the past three seasons. The Super Bowl will be his 46th game for the Eagles.

Philadelphia general manager and vice-president Howie Roseman admits the Eagles would have kicked themselves if they bypassed Mailata in the draft.

“There’s certain players whereby you couldn’t live with yourself if you saw them have success somewhere else,” Roseman said in an NFL documentary on Mailata.

“It would have haunted us if we didn’t get Jordan.”

Philadelphia offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland added: “If this guy was in (an American) college today, he would be a first or second-round draft pick.

“It’s like Christmas when you are provided with a player like Jordan and he doesn’t have any bad habits.

“Every single day, we worked on his hands as an offensive linesman. We did it religiously. The technique, the footwork, the set lines, the departure angles.

“The coaching accelerated his learning curve.

“I reminded everyone it was going to take time. And I said to Jordan, ‘There will come a time when it all comes together for you’.”

The Australian has become an NFL star. Picture: Getty Images

THE FUTURE

That time is now. Mailata is tantalisingly close to an NFL championship ring. The gargantuan gamble has paid unimaginable dividends.

“If his body holds up, Jordan could play in the NFL for another 10 years,” Orr said.

“Who knows, he could go down as one of the all-time great left tackles to have played in the NFL.

“The records show the highest-paid left tackle is paid around $30 million a year, so over ten years, that’s potentially $300 million for Jordan.

“I don’t think any of us realised how good he could be. Some people joke the NFL stands for Not For Long. It is so cut throat. They can cut blokes at any time. He could have been delisted at any time for other clubs to pick him up, but Philadelphia always kept Jordan active when he was injured because they knew how good he was.

“At the end of the day, as a sports agent you are there to assist the athlete secure an opportunity and then it’s up to them. And when one door closes, like it did in the NRL, you have to think outside the square, which is what we did.

“All credit has to go to Jordan. He has shown so much resilience, character and strength in himself.

“He had major setbacks over the first few years with injuries, but he hung in there and came out the other side.

“He has worked hard and earned everything he has achieved. Jordan should be extremely proud of himself, I played a very small part in what is certain to become one of the best sporting stories of the past decade. It really is a remarkable story.

“Jordan Mailata has played himself into a Super Bowl … let’s hope he gets that ring.”

Originally published as Super Bowl 2023: Jordan Mailata’s remarkable journey to NFL stardom