Former Kenya rugby 15s (Simbas) player Joshua Weru has signed a one-year contract with National Football League ( NFL) side Philadelphia Eagles in the USA.
The 23-year-old, on Saturday, 25 April, landed a spot in the NFL, getting picked by NFL franchise Philadelphia Eagles after going undrafted through seven rounds, meaning that he has now signed as an undrafted free agent through the NFL International Player Pathway (IPP) program.
“Eagles General Manager (GM) Howie Roseman said he’s also signing Kenya’s Josh Weru from the NFL’s International Pathway Program (IPP), ”Jeffrey McLane, a sportswriter at The Philadelphia Inquirer, broke the news on X.
As an Undrafted Free Agent (UDFA) in the International Player Pathway (IPP) program, he typically enters on a standard one-year contract designed to secure a spot on the preseason roster and practice squad.
Weru, who is the son of former Kenya Harlequin Rugby Football Club player Ken Thimba, played for the Kenya Simbas on November 6, 2022, primarily making his debut during the Rugby World Cup Final Qualification Tournament in Dubai, a young bubbly backrow/Number 8 by then, scoring a try on his debut against the USA.
That year, he moved to England and secured a pro-contract with Rugby Premiership side Northampton Saints, only for him to lose his status in the side due to a lack of a work permit.
He had a short stint in the French side US Dax, before finally deciding to join Arizona State University, where IPP scout Mark Dulgerian took notice, and offered him a workout, resulting to him joining the American football sport, ditching rugby.
2026 has been a busy year for Weru, who has taken part in the IPP’s intensive 10-week training camp at X3 Performance and Physical Therapy in Fort Myers, Florida, before showing out his talents at last month’s pro-day in Virginia.
Now the Kenyan has a year to prove to his coaches and GM Howie Roseman that indeed he deserves a spot on the Eagles’ 53-man active roster, a dream come true that will enbale him to make his NFL debut, and if at all it will be, then he will become the seond Kenyan after Daniel Adongo, a former Kenya Harlequin RFC junior player, who played for the Indianapolis Colts as a linebacker back in 2015.