Jefferson took the suggestions to heart. He attended the Manning Passing Academy and picked the brains of Peyton, Eli and Archie about leadership more than arm angles. He spent more time in the film room, but with increased knowledge on what to look for on game tapes.
He took over the 7-on-7 passing drills, often dragging wide receivers to the practice field when they'd rather hang out by the pool. Jefferson always was around the practice facility throwing to receivers or into a net.
"(The Mannings taught me to) make sure those guys follow your lead, that they are behind you 100 percent," he said. "Making sure you understand how your receivers run the routes -- every receiver is different, their running styles are different. I really focused on that the past couple of weeks since I've been at camp, and I started to notice the small things."
Jefferson talked to everybody, even his defensive teammates. He spent a lot of time hanging out with his roommate, cornerback Patrick Peterson, and middle linebacker Kelvin Sheppard, who is the leader of the defense. They talked leadership.
"I told him he's one of the leaders on the team, whether he wants to be or not," Sheppard said. "The quarterback has to be a leader to have a championship football team. Jordan is ready to take on that role.
"It wasn't the questions he asked me, but the expressions and the way he was giving feedback that he was ready to roll. He's working hard every day, putting in the hours."
Read the whole thing
No comments:
Post a Comment