Jackson, Cominsky take you inside the week

DAY ONE - Monday

Tyree Jackson, QB – University of Buffalo

The Senior Bowl is a prestigious event and a tremendous opportunity. I am very appreciative to get invited to and I am blessed to be here. I want to prove to teams that I am a hard worker and can make all the plays consistently on the field. 

I got in Sunday night from LA. My roommate is Jarrett Stidham. Drew Lock, Jarrett, and I are training together in California, so we have a great relationship. 

Jim Nagy has put on a great event.  I had the opportunity to meet Jim Nagy at the Dollar General Bowl this December and he has been great. I was honored when he found a way to get me into the game when we were expected to have five quarterbacks on my team. I’m very thankful for him. 

I’m very excited to show I can handle the pressure and spotlight of the NFL. More pressure just means more opportunity. It’s a good thing to have pressure. I’m excited for the chance to show myself this week and compete with the best.  

Today I had the opportunity to meet with a lot of teams and a lot of coaches. It has been awesome to hear from different people and talk football. I also had the opportunity to meet with my team and our coaches - the 49ers staff - and they were great.

I loved the first day and looking forward to practicing tomorrow.  

John Cominsky, DL – University of Charleston

I am extremely excited to have been invited to the Reese’s Senior Bowl.  It has been an incredible experience so far.  It means everything to me to be here, especially considering I felt that I was overlooked coming out of high school. The NFL doesn’t overlook players, and they found me. As a small-school guy, I am so grateful for the opportunity. We have had unlimited access to NFL scouts that want to talk and get to know me. I hope to show that I am among the best to come out of this 2019 draft class.

I flew in from my training camp in Naples, FL. Check in went smooth and my roommate is Zach Allen from Boston College.  Jim Nagy, has put together a great event.  He has been very encouraging and kept in contact with college team the University of Charleston. I think he really enjoys hearing about my story. I’m glad he took a chance on me and that has helped my reputation coming into the Senior bowl.

I am as ready as I could be for this moment. Practice will be challenging, but fun.  Since confirming my invite to the Senior Bowl, I have done everything I can to be in the best position possible for success.

Meeting the NFL coaching staffs has been great.  Today, I was introduced to the Raiders coaching staff and learned the basics of the defense. I also did some psychological testing this evening, which was very exhausting. I’m excited to get on the field tomorrow and play some football. 

DAY TWO - Tuesday

Tyree Jackson, QB – University of Buffalo

It felt great to get back to practice. We all came here to get better and show what we have on the practice field and it was great to get out there. 

There is a little bit of rust for the first time going through a full practice since the last game of the season, but football is football and it went well.  

As for starting a new system, it wasn’t as difficult as people make it out to be - working with new coaches and teammates. It’s new terminology and it’s learning the speed and how people run their routes. But it’s been great I have enjoyed learning from (49ers head ooach) Kyle (Shanahan), and our position coach Mike LaFleur.  

The competition on the South team is great.  There is a lot of talent on the team from people all across the country and a lot of SEC players as well. It was great to compete with each other and get each other better on both sides of the ball. 

I think I did some things well today and made some progress. The thing I am focused on is to improve each day, and continually clean up my game. My goal for tomorrow to is to be better than I was today!

That’s the message from the coaches as well is to continue to build days on top of each other and continually get better.

John Cominsky, DL – University of Charleston

It’s relieving to finally get back out on the practice field today. There’s been a lot of talking the last couple days, it was fun to actually play some ball again. I definitely some to shake off some rust considering my last football game was in early November, but I felt like I got back in the swing of things.

Tomorrow should be a much better day. Because of the newness of the system, it took some adjustments mentally with the new scheme and new surroundings. I was able to quickly adapt to the routine and follow the coaches lead. The competition was stout, but I feel that I did very well. It was exciting to be able to take reps against some of the best in the country. I was encouraged about my hustling today.  Effors twas my number one best thing today. Every play I hustled. 

I still have to continue to improve.  I got some feedback from Bryan Cox. I need to be more confident during one on ones and trust my moves to beat the blocker.

DAY THREE - Wednesday

Tyree Jackson, QB – University of Buffalo

Starting practice today, I felt a lot more comfortable with practice and how we go about it.  The timing felt smoother. 

The system and terminology are things, we as a quarterback group, have picked up and it is coming along better each day. That part is an important piece of the mental preparation and it is becoming more automatic.  It’s been exciting to add more each day.   

This process has been rewarding and a welcome challenge.  So far, physically and mentally, I feel great. I always remind myself what a great opportunity it is to be here and that makes me make sure that I never take a day for granted. It’s been great so far! I am looking forward to practice on Thursday and continuing to work with my teammates to get better.  

John Cominsky, DL – University of Charleston

I felt that my practice today was better than practice yesterday. A lot of rust was knocked off and I felt better running around and playing ball again.

Being in this practice structure for the second time, I felt more comfortable with what the coaches expected and how practice was ran after having a day to adjust.  I expect to continue to progress going into tomorrow.

In terms of understanding and executing my assignments, I felt it was much easier to fulfill today.  Since I was more relaxed and comfortable with the tempo of a Raiders practice it allowed me to think less and just go to work and try to make plays.  

This process has been challenging both mentally and physically.  Mentally, this has been different than a typical game week with all of the additional meeting, interviews and testing. I keep reminding myself of how awesome of an opportunity this is and that is what keeps me energized and enthused.  I am looking forward to finishing the week strong and keep improving each day.    

DAY FOUR- Thursday

Tyree Jackson, QB – University of Buffalo

The week went well, and I thought we ended on-field practice on a great note. One play today, that stood out to me was a pass to LSU TE Foster Moreau, where he made a great catch for a TD. 

I feel very comfortable with all that we installed for the week, and I’m excited to go out and play the game. The QB position group has had a lot of fun this week. We have all enjoyed each other’s company and developed a friendship. 

Someone that has stuck out to me and a guy that I’ve thrown some passes to was Hunter Renfrow from Clemson. He’s been doing a really good job all week, someone who is fun to throw too.  Obviously, he had a great college career and he is producing during practice here as well.   

Tomorrow’s practice is a walk through.  So far, my body feels good after three full-pad practices.  I’m excited for the game this Saturday and interested to see who wins.

John Cominsky, DL – University of Charleston

The third practice felt like I really let go of any hesitation and just let it fly. The rust is completely knocked off and I’m just playing ball again. I felt I took small steps to improve each day I have been here at practice. As a team, practice was fast, and the team’s brotherhood is developed.   

Today, I was involved in a high-impact play in the backfield. The fullback came to kick me out and I met him with full speed in the hole. As a defensive lineman, it was awesome to be involved in that kind of play.

With full-pad practice complete, I am confident in my assignments now. I had a few mental errors throughout the week while learning the defense, but I will certainly clean it up come game day.

Getting to know everyone has been fantastic.  The defensive line room has shared plenty of laughs and I think we have formed a strong bond with the few days we have had. The team also is feeling more like a family now.

I have been playing as a left-defensive end, so I have been getting the majority of my reps against Washington’s and Kansas State’s offensive lineman. Both who have challenged me and have been fun to compete against. 

I’m excited to have a down day on Friday.  My body is pretty beat up with the little aches and pains you get from full-contact. I can’t wait for Saturday’s game, it will be a good matchup.