This offseason, Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins got kicked out of an OTA practice and then proceeded to have what could best be described as a meltdown on Twitter directly afterward, which drew the ire of many Tampa Bay fans who have kind of soured on him anyway after two injury-riddled seasons. Some of those fans were even calling for Seferian-Jenkins to be cut.
It’s time for Austin Seferian-Jenkins to reward the Buccaneers’ patience
He lost his standing on top of the depth chart at tight end during training camp, but it’s going to be hard to keep Seferian-Jenkins off the field considering what he can do with the ball in his hands.
Yeah, well, that’s not likely to happen unless ASJ does something far more egregious than cussing out a few trolling fans on Twitter.
No matter what anybody thinks of the kid on a personal level, on the field, when he is healthy, ASJ is a beast in the passing game. I have to specify that last part because even though he has good size at 6’5 and 262 pounds, he isn’t good at the whole blocking part of playing tight end. It hasn’t really been a matter of effort as much as his technique was poor his rookie season and last season he was dealing with a shoulder injury that knocked him out of nine games and hampered him even after he got back on the field. So he has some work to do when it comes to that part of his game, but there is no denying that he is a serious weapon in the passing game.
He looks a little awkward at times, but ASJ runs good routes and has enough speed to run away from most linebackers in the league. If he gets matched up with a safety, he also knows how to use his size to out-muscle them for the football. He also isn’t afraid of contact and doesn’t mind catching balls in traffic, something I really like about his game..
It appears that the Bucs’ patience with ASJ may be wearing thin. Cameron Brate seems to have overtaken him on the depth chart this preseason. But Brate just can’t give you what ASJ can in the passing game. Brate’s a good player, but ASJ has legit Pro Bowl potential. He’s a guy opposing defenses will have to account for.
I don’t know if the demotion is a motivational ploy or what, but with all the talk of Jameis Winston’s maturity this offseason, a healthy ASJ should be in for a huge year. I’m talking 60 receptions and double-digit touchdowns, easy.
However, the main concern has got to be whether he can stay on the field. I wasn’t one of the people who knocked him for not being able to get over his shoulder injury last season. What I know from having played in the league is that in general, the team is going to let you play if you can go, even if you go out there and stink it up. So the fact that the team wasn’t allowing him to play gave me the distinct impression that his shoulder injury was pretty serious. Then when he did get back on the field, it became obvious on film that he was still having trouble with that arm. So his injuries have been legitimate, not a case of whether a guy is “soft” or not.
Injuries or not, the Bucs simply can’t afford to keep waiting for him to stay healthy. If he can’t do it this year, then it may well be time for them to move on and see what Brate or some other tight end can do. I don’t think we have reached that point just yet.
Maybe Austin Seferian-Jenkins just got all of his injuries out of the way early and won’t have to worry about them the rest of his career. Hell, heading into last season Washington had a tight end who was “injury prone” his first few seasons, but by the end of the year Jordan Reed was playing like one of the best at his position.
Maybe that could be ASJ this year. Maybe not. I do know this much: if he does play 16 games this year, there is a good chance that many of the Bucs fans who have soured on will be singing a new tune come next January.
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