Hugh Renton catches up with former NFL player Brian Peters (left) and physician and strength coach Dylan Seeley during his trip to the United States. PHOTO: INSTAGRAM
Those would be Hugh Renton's first selections if the Highlanders put together an American football team, and he might even find a place for himself at linebacker or tight end.
"I've seen Jacob catch a few high balls and cross-field kicks, and he's got the speed to make a late cut and get into position, and he's tall and he can jump.
"Tanielu would be a pretty nice running back, pretty powerful in the A-gap, pushing through, and then I guess you can go with Ethan and Saula in the O-line.
"They're big and mobile, and they can move bodies and block and also create space for themselves."
Like many of his team-mates, Renton is a keen fan of both the NFL and the NBA, and he took advantage of a post-NPC break to spend some time in the United States.
He went from Los Angeles to Ohio, New York and Washington DC and back again, and trained with former Houston Texans player Brian Peters, who runs a human performance company called Chasing Edges.
The aim was to glean some insight from how elite athletes seek small advantages, even if it might seem NFL and rugby players were poles apart.
"The NFL is all technique. They just spend all their time running technique, hand drills, feet drills, so they're all about body position.
"Rugby players are a bit of an everything athlete, big engines, you have to go, you have to adapt under fatigue, make decisions, you're attacking, defending, you're doing everything."
Renton also caught some ice hockey and three NBA games.
But the focus of his trip was the NFL, and he watched in awe as the likes of quarterback stars Joe Burrow and Lamar Jackson weaved their magic.
"Joe Burrow, he's a class act. Pretty cool to watch with his long throwing game.
"And Lamar is just a freak scrambler. He's awesome," Renton said.
A special treat was seeing his favourite team, the San Francisco 49ers, play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
