Most rookies find someone to lean on during their first training camp and for tight end Jordan Leggett, that person is Austin Seferian-Jenkins.
"Honestly, right now that's like a big brother to me," Leggett said. "I'm just trying to follow in his footsteps. He's completely changed his life around. He's someone I want to be around to just stay out of trouble and help me learn the offense every which way possible. He's somebody to look at film with. He's definitely been there and I'm just trying to do what he does."
Down 33 pounds, Seferian-Jenkins has reinvented himself both on and off the field. The former second-round pick said he's approaching this year differently than in previous years as he gets taped with the rookies and takes extra reps with the quarterbacks and on the JUGS following practice.
"It's been a great relationship," Seferian-Jenkins said. "He works really hard. He comes in and gets as much film with me as he can and he's really receptive to learning. He's coachable and when he makes mistakes, he comes back and tries to make a play. He doesn't want to harbor it too long and that's part of being a rookie. I think he's already far ahead in that aspect of getting here early in the morning. He's really dedicated. The sky is the limit as long as he keeps working."
The TEs are likely going be more involved in the passing game in coordinator John Morton's West Coast offense. Both Seferian-Jenkins and Leggett are enjoying the system, but Leggett said the scheme's complexity was originally difficult to digest.
"I've definitely learned a lot," the 6'5", 258-pound rookie said. "I've latched on to him and learned everything that he does. This offense is new to all of us because Coach Morton hasn't been here for a long time, so we're all learning it. I'm learning the ins and outs from him. We're in there during lunch and dinner. We just grab our food and go in there and watch film. Then when we're out on the field, we just try to get better at something every day. Pad levels was the thing today. I'm trying to push him as much as possible and he's trying to push me. I'm just trying to get where he's at."
