People expect rookies to be great, and I understand why. But the reality is that even when we look at the success stories, this is rare. Let's look at a few of the great ones for a moment … the best case scenarios if you will:
Jimmy Graham
Great player who came in and was exceptional. A draft target of Parcells' Dolphins who was plucked a round early by New Orleans. Sean Payton knew exactly how to use him. When he was with Payton and Brees, he was a dominant player and absolute star. Then in his prime, he moved to the Super Bowl contending Seattle Seahawks, and in their system was not nearly as successful. The combo of being asked to block in the run game and recovering from injuries didn't just stunt his growth, it caused an immediate and very significant regression for him as a player. Graham still had the ability, but it wasn't being orchestrated in a system that could showcase it. Despite his return to earth in Seattle, we can all agree Jimmy Graham was fantastic in Sean Payton's system. But, his second half of his rookie season was better than his first half. His second year was better than his rookie year. He took a year to develop into that monster player he became, and while his rookie season was exceptional … it was still a growth year.
Rob Gronkowski
OK, he was recovering from a serious back injury that cost him a full season and much of the run-up to the draft, so how much was really expected of Rob Gronkowski? He was easily a top 15 talent, and would have gone in the top half of the first round if not for the injury. But despite the propaganda saying he was fully healthy, he hadn't played football at the highest level in a while. He needed time. I recall having a conversation with a New England Patriots fan who foolishly said that the Patriots used Gronkowski to lull teams to sleep and "then would bring in the good tight end" (Aaron Hernandez) to make big plays. I had to educate him on his own player, because like many Patriots fans he suffered from a common problem, the bandwagon didn't come with a scouting report. I explained how Gronkowski was the best TE prospect I'd seen in my entire lifetime, how he was a better version of Mark Bravaro who could dominate in run blocking, pass blocking, size mismatch receiving vs. DB's and a speed mismatch receiving vs. LB's and one of the best seam threats ever. But, because Gronkowski's rookie season was a growth year, that Patriot fan simply had no clue how good Gronkowski was.
Travis Kelce
Sure, great TE now. He looked like a very high upside but kinda raw prospect--sort of like Jimmy Graham--when he came out. He was good very quickly, but his first season was nowhere near the stuff that followed. If you watch one game last year, then one game his rookie season, you can see a huge difference. No longer is he just occasional flashes of great play. Now he is dominant.
Now, Mike Gesicki, who I rate exceedingly highly, will become an excellent TE. I'm confident that he'll make his share of highlight reel catches and score a good amount of TD's. But, he's not going to instantly be great. He is going to be a rookie TE like every other rookie TE. By the end of the year, he'll be better than he is at the start of the season. And by his second year, we'll have that monster player we are hoping for. He is in the same mold of size, athleticism, great hands, he wants to be great, he's a hard worker on both the physical skills and the studying, and many of the route concepts we're going to ask him to run he's familiar with from college. But at the end of the day, rookie TE's have a steep learning curve. It's not going to be without bumps along the way. It's not going to be without him disappearing sometimes as he is not yet the finished product.
So, let's enjoy the ride, celebrate those great plays, and realize that those invisible times will be learning moments for Mike Gesicki. His second year, we'll know whether he learned from them. Until then, just stay positive and watch him grow.
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