Drake Jackson knows he's going into a great situation. Two weeks ago, the 21-year-old rookie defensive end was the first selection by the San Francisco 49ers, added during the second round. Eventually, the 49ers expect him to fill the role once envisioned for Dee Ford—a strong pass rusher opposite phenom Nick Bosa.
Jackson could develop into that complementary piece for the 49ers defense. Luckily, he has a great role model in Bosa.
"Watching him, the whole D-line, watching them hunt, I cannot wait to go get out there with those guys and just turn up with them," Jackson told reporters on Friday.
After Jackson was drafted, Bosa was among several 49ers players who reached out to say, "Welcome to the squad." The others were second-year quarterback Trey Lance, veteran cornerback Emmanuel Moseley, and fellow defensive lineman Arik Armstead.
Jackson was a little star-struck communicating with his new teammates.
"I was astounded," Jackson said earlier this month. "I'm like, 'Damn, this is crazy.' Everybody hitting me up off the team, but they're kind of like legends too. I'm fanboying, but I've got to be professional at the same time."
Kris Kocurek works with 49ers rookies Drake Jackson and Kevin Atkins (Fresno State) for the first time pic.twitter.com/n2UMMVXi9E
— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) May 13, 2022
Jackson knows he has a massive opportunity with Bosa as his teammate. There is a great deal of respect there. The rookie defensive end wanted to pick his veteran teammate's brain immediately after learning he was headed to the 49ers. He didn't, though, because he knew the time for that would come.
"I wanted to text him that night, draft night," Jackson shared on Friday. "Just figure out pretty much the answers to the test. You've got that guy right next to you that's been doing it. And his brother, he can learn from his brother too. So it goes down all through [the family]. So I get the answers. I definitely want to learn and try to stay behind those guys that been doing it. Arik Armstead, he a freak too."
Jackson is taking part in the 49ers' three-day rookie minicamp, concluding on Sunday. However, he's already looking forward to the day when he can work with his new veteran teammates and learn from their experience.
"I can't wait for those guys to get here," Jackson added.