One NFL writer praises Jarryd Hayne’s attitude, while another critiques his technique

ALMOST a week has passed since Jarryd Hayne’s stellar preseason debut for the San Francisco 49ers, and America is still buzzing.

SANTA CLARA, CA - AUGUST 7: Jarryd Hayne #38 of the San Francisco 49ers runs drills during a practice session at Levi's Stadium on August 7, 2015 in Santa Clara, California. Hayne formerly played professional rugby in Australia. Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

ALMOST a week has passed since Jarryd Hayne’s stellar preseason debut for the San Francisco 49ers, and America is still buzzing.

Frank Schwab, the editor of Yahoo!’s NFL blog Shutdown Corner, is the latest expert to give Hayne’s “oddball story” some serious attention.

“He was recognised as the best rugby player in the world. That’s all well and good, but we take American football seriously over here, and not just anyone can come in and compete on this level,” Schwab writes.

“And then, the guy who said he had tried on football pads ‘two or three times’ before signing with the 49ers in March sliced through the Houston Texans for a 53-yard run.

“You have our attention now, Mr Hayne.”

MORE: NFL’s official website rates Hayne

THAT run.

Schwab is careful to emphasise that Hayne is “still learning” and has “a lot of work to do”, but he’s clearly been impressed by the former league star’s attitude.

“Most players in the NFL are committed, but not many of them uprooted their lives from the other side of the world and changed sports just to try to win a job for less than one-third of the pay,” he says.

“This is an incredible NFL preseason story, except it doesn’t seem that way to the guy living it.”

IMO the best human interest story of the preseason, no doubt. Crazy the commitment that Jarryd Hayne made https://t.co/LijBfLNfgv

— Frank Schwab (@YahooSchwab) August 19, 2015

The article also includes some complimentary quotes from Alex Boone, who plays at guard for the 49ers.

“He’s probably a lot tougher than a lot of us. He’s not afraid to get dirty,” the NFL star said.

“I’m typically not a fan of people who don’t play football that try to come play football, so my first impression was, ‘What the hell are you doing?’

“But rugby is the ultimate football sport, so at some point he’s probably like, ‘What the hell are you guys doing?’”

Alex Boone.

In that vein, it seems many Americans are still asking themselves where the hell Hayne came from. Most fans had never heard of him before last weekend’s game against the Texans, but one moment in particular changed that.

The NFL has released a video of the top 10 plays across the first round of preseason matches. Hayne’s 53-yard run made the cut at number eight.

Meanwhile, over at the league’s official website, respected analyst Bucky Brooks has graded Hayne’s performance, giving us all a much needed reality check in the process.

“Hayne is a bit of a straight-line runner with limited wiggle in the open field,” Brooks writes. “He stays on his tracks and rarely deviates from his assigned route. While some coaches appreciate a one-cut runner with patience, Hayne needs to show more creativity to be a successful runner as a pro.

“He will need to show evaluators that he can elude and evade defenders in traffic.”

Fair enough. Thankfully, Brooks has some nice things to say as well.

“It is uncommon for a rugby player to transition to the NFL at a skill position, but Hayne is quickly acclimating to the pro game as a runner,” he says.

“He exhibits solid instincts and awareness with the ball in his hands, showcasing a nice feel for finding creases in the middle of the defence. As a kick returner, he is patient attacking the seam, but shows the burst and physicality needed to churn out 30-yard gains.”

That sober, level-headed analysis is insightful and fascinating, but even so, we feel 247Sports has summed up Hayne’s performance even better with a single image on their Facebook page:

Well said.