Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Myles Garrett was trained by a former rugby player to hit harder
Myles Garrett may have set an NFL record with 23 sacks last season, but he’s still looking to take his game to another level in his first year with the Los Angeles Rams. The future Hall of Fame pass rusher has been working with a former rugby player to learn how to hit hard.
After being traded away from the doom and gloom of the Cleveland Browns to the bright lights of the Los Angeles Rams, Myles Garrett landed a $208 million contract with the team, who are now the betting favorite to win this year’s Super Bowl.
Myles Garrett has been working with Australian rugby coach Billy Coffey to learn how to hit people harder using biomechanics
Despite getting his payday, Garrett has shown no signs of slacking off as he’s spent some of the offseason working out with Australian rugby coach Billy Coffey.
@billycoachcoff ✅DOMINATE IMPACT WITH ONE CUE.💥 “Hips first, then the foot.” Watch what happens next. So many of my athletes search for ground with their feet first, this takes away all ur momentum and in a dominant collision it’s about where ur hips are in relations to ur front foot. If u step first, ur taking away the advantage before u even begin. Even if it’s subtle. It must be first. The hip must be the first to move, then u can begin the search for ground. Violent actions are effective when ur hips are either in front of your hammer (plant foot) or past half way towards the front foot if u divide the distance between them. Next game, simply tell ureself “hips first” and watch the magic happen. Cya Friday 👀 @flash_garrett #rams #collision #coach #tackle @NFL @NFLaus @Los Angeles Rams @MG @l_mencho22 @UCLA BRUINS💙🤍💛
Coffey is an ex-professional rugby player who has spent years developing a system for teaching precise collision biomechanics — the physics of how bodies transfer force on impact. The system focuses on hip extension, head placement, and force transfer, which have all been developed through over a century of padless rugby tackling in which poor technique is far more detrimental given the sport’s lack of pads.
“With the whole social media thing, I get hit up all the time by players in the US to come over,” Coffey, who has a degree in exercise sports science and is an Australian Strength and Conditioning Association level II coach, told the Newcastle Herald.
“I got a message from this guy called Shey which said I really want you to meet with Myles Garrett. I said, ‘No dramas, here is my number’. I had no idea who Myles Garrett was. I asked a few mates if this guy was any good. They were like, ‘probably the best in the world right now,'” he continued.
“I flew to the US and spent a week designing tricks he wants to bring in next season. He wants to get better. The NFL players absorb detail. I’ll give him 25 cues, and the next hit he would nail all 25. I’ll tell you what, he knows how to hit.”
Coffey has also done sessions with the UCLA Bruins, has a meeting next week with the Cleveland Browns, and is in contact with the coaching staff at Ohio State.
Garrett and the Los Angeles Rams will be kicking off their 2026 NFL season from the other side of the world when they take on the San Francisco 49ers in Melbourne on Thursday, September 10 at 8:35 p.m. EST.