That also involves tracking the ball 40 plus yards down the field. Not exactly something rugby players do. They get the ball in their hands by fielding kicks and handling tosses.
They have to be able to either get off press and then go, or the CB plays off and he's got to get the CB to hesitate a bit before going deep. Plus getting both feet in bounds and being able to adjust to the ball as it comes down.
That's why I think shorter routes for him which allow him YAC opportunties at this point in his career would make more sense as opposed to deeper passes.
Okay gotcha.
My thinking was if all he's doing is shorter routes, it makes it hard to get him involved as teams can see him on the field and they know what's coming next.
And that if he can run a long route - which I think athletically he can, both in terms of long pace and having the physicality/footwork to get free - then that taxes his understanding of the game less than running intermediate stuff. Yeah, you're probably not going to target him, but as long as he clears space for other runners it works. And the CB has to go with him or he'll be wide wide open.
If he can do that a couple of times and force teams to treat him like a real player - even if he's a decoy - it makes it easier to get him involved. It's "he's on the field, continue as normal" not "he's on the field, press right in his face". Maybe go routes aren't the best way of doing it, but there's got to be something to make him a little unpredictable.
The ball tracking and catches under pressure are something that will definitely represent a problem for him though. He will have done elements of them in terms of kick chase, cross-field kicks, and going up for 50-50 balls, but it's mostly going to be alien. Rugby technique in those circumstances is different too, generally you're looking to secure body position and let it fall into the bread basket rather than trying to high point the ball.