Austin Seferian-Jenkins Ready To Roll
July 25th, 2014
Bucs TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins declared himself fully recovered from offseason surgery.
For the most part, even to the Tampa Bay pen and mic club, rookie tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins is a mystery. Not only was he recovering from foot surgery to stabilize a fracture during Bucs spring practices, ASJ rarely attended.
University of Washington is on a quarter system and the school’s schedule was a conflict. Per NFL rules, rookies whose college hours conflict with OTAs or minicamps cannot participate.
Joe knows Bucs general manager Jason Licht liked his tight ends prior to the draft (in particular, Tim Wright) but ASJ had really wowed both Bucs coach Lovie Smith and Licht big time while they studied pre-draft film.
Though Licht didn’t necessarily want to draft a tight end this spring, ASJ was so far up the Bucs’ draft board that when he was still on the board in the second round, Licht and Lovie all but did double-takes, not believing he was still available. So they pounced.
ASJ gave himself a clean bill of health while talking to reporters yesterday morning when he reported to One Buc Palace. He is chomping at the bit to get started.
“I am finally here and that’s what counts,” ASJ said. “I’m ready to work with everybody else. We have a lot of good guys. You have Vincent Jackson, you have Mike Evans, you have Tim Wright. you have myself, a lot of guys who can do some things. I’m excited about getting to work.
“I’m trying to work on everything. Assuming everyone [on defense in the NFL] is really, really good. I’m trying to improve my game any way I can.
“Looking forward to getting out here. Got to throw with Josh [McCown] some days and run some routes. We got a little bit of chemistry down and some timing down.“
Joe thinks it is cool that ASJ flew out from Seattle on Friday in order to get workouts in with McCown and try to make up for lost time.
Attitudes like that have Joe excited about the coming season.
To hear more from ASJ, click on the little red button below, courtesy of Joe’s good friends at WDAE-AM 620.
July 25th, 2014 at 8:23 am
Our RedZone package is going to be SCARY!!! Confidence is definitely the word of the day around here. Late game drives look very promising. And the depth of this team is rediculous.
July 25th, 2014 at 8:29 am
I’m seriously putting money on the Bucs to win the Superbowl this year. We are probably the most overall talented team in the NFL now. And all of our studs seem to be driven & pretty humble. Perfect situation for success. And yes, Joe, we have a QB /point guard who can get the job done & effectively distribute the ball to our elite playmakers.
July 25th, 2014 at 8:33 am
Slow down buc the haters
July 25th, 2014 at 8:52 am
@Buc the Haters,
Don’t put too much money down. I think the Bronco’s and Seahawks would beg to differ on your talent opinion. I think we have great talent but I don’t think its #1. There are some damned good teams out there. Better OL’s than we have and better QB’s.
Top 10 in talent? I could maybe go with 8th, 9th or 10th but not #1.
July 25th, 2014 at 9:03 am
Gotta give it to you Buc the Haters, that’s some high in the clouds optimism. I used to have that optimism for about every upcoming Bucs season from the beginning. Reality slapped me in the face much more often than not. How can you not be excited though? A new season and the possibilities are endless.
July 25th, 2014 at 9:08 am
Though it would be nice to have a house-hold name at quaterback, it’s more than JUST A NAME. McCown is a great quaterback and we should not knock him just yet. He’s smart, experienced, and most importantly patient! Thats a quaterback you want to take you all the way. a LEADER. And Josh has proved that.
July 25th, 2014 at 9:22 am
Best pick of the Bucs draft, calling it now!
July 25th, 2014 at 9:32 am
This guy is a beast…. A good blocker at the line of scrimmage and in space… Great hands… Our TE packages can finally do some damage.
July 25th, 2014 at 9:50 am
Have some fun Buc the Haters. Enjoy the feel of enthusiasm. Keep your money in your pocket however. Puts too much pressure on being right and can spoil the enjoyment.
July 25th, 2014 at 9:53 am
ASJ will be the best two way TE the Bucs have had in several decades and was the best TE in the draft this year! Great addition to our offense.
July 25th, 2014 at 10:08 am
I’d say if tampas odds to win the SB are 25:1 or lower I would throw 20 bucks down on them winning it all. I did the same with the Mariners this year. Now to ASJ, this kid excites me and I believe going to become a great TE. I cannot wait for this season to start to watch this team because they will be competitive and not constantly piss me off like last years team, unless josh McCown plays like ole Luke McCown or revert to younger Josh McCown.
July 25th, 2014 at 10:53 am
Odds for us to win the SB are 40:1, so I’m throwin down at least a couple hundy. I seriously don’t know how anyone will have a prayer of stopping us… I’m very confident that we’ll have a top-10 offense & top-10 defense this year; maybe even top-5 for both.
July 25th, 2014 at 2:17 pm
Joe
We want the best team not the best players, big difference.