Every rookie who enters the NFL has some level of adjustment to make. Learning the plays, earning a paycheck and getting used to the speed of the game are all things you hear a lot about.
Jets rookie tight end Hayden Smith needs to get used to wearing a helmet.
Smith, who is from Australia and spent the past four years playing rugby in England, had never worn a helmet or participated in a football practice until yesterday.
“It was quite good actually,” Smith said of wearing his headgear. “I had better vision than I expected, and sure enough, soon enough you just forget that you’re wearing it. It’s something you definitely make an adjustment to quickly. That’s probably just because I’m so concerned with what I have to do. My mind is going a million miles an hour. It was good fun to put the helmet on and have a bit of a runaround.”
Not many rookies describe practice as a “bit of a runaround,” either.
The Jets signed the 27-year-old Smith last month to a three-year contract, hoping he can develop into a contributor for them. At the moment, he’s an early work in progress. Smith showed some pass-catching ability yesterday, but received some major instruction in route running from offensive coordinator Tony Sparano, who referred to him as “Aussie.”
“I understand that there is a process,” Smith said. “I know the situation I’m in. However, I wouldn’t be a competitor and I wouldn’t be a professional athlete in rugby or be able to get where I was if I wasn’t pushing to do well. My goal obviously is to make the team. However anything that eventuates around that is largely what will happen, will happen. I’ll be doing my best to put my best foot forward and hopefully get on the roster.”
Smith said it always has been a dream of his to play football. He grew up in Australia, but moved to the United States to attend college and play basketball at Metropolitan State in Denver. Once he graduated, he took up rugby and wound up on the U.S. national team. He then went to England to play for Saracens, a top-level team.
Late last year, he decided he wanted to try to play football. He trained with former University of Minnesota coach Tim Brewster and got tryouts with the Jets and Saints.
“I would not bet against this young man,” Jets coach Rex Ryan said.
Jets tight ends coach Mike Devlin and assistant tight ends coach Lance Taylor are working with Smith to help him with the playbook, which Smith said was “overwhelming” at first. One funny moment yesterday occurred when he ran into punter Travis Baltz.
“That was play on in rugby,” Smith said jokingly.
Unlike most rookies, Smith has been able to work with coaches for the last few weeks since he was not coming out of college.
Ryan said he has been impressed with how hard Smith is working.
“I don’t think we can say that he’ll have an impact immediately, but I’ll say this: He’s working like he’s going to,” Ryan said. “This guy is studying like crazy. I see him in the facility and he’s out there by himself, running routes, going through assignments. This guy wants it. He’s been successful in other areas. Why not? He looked decent out there. It’s crazy to think this guy never put on a helmet before, never ran a route, never did anything like that and when he’s out there, could you really tell that?”