Ji'Ayir Brown enters his second NFL season with newfound confidence. The San Francisco 49ers safety believes he's a much-improved player compared to last year and is eager to demonstrate his growth to fans and opposing offenses alike.
Brown isn't setting specific statistical goals for the 2024 season. Instead, he's focused on staying present and executing his role to perfection on any given day.
"You can't look too far ahead, you can't look too far behind, because you will miss where you're at right now," Brown wisely told Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area in an exclusive interview.
Brown is set to start in Week 1 against the New York Jets. While he isn't preoccupied with his stats, he's looking to build on his promising but brief rookie season, which culminated in a Super Bowl appearance. Brown didn't start until Talanoa Hufanga was sidelined with an injury, but he made the most of his opportunity.
Now, Brown is determined to prove himself throughout a full season.
"I'm ready to go. I'm ready for Week 1," Browns said. "I'm ready to get the season going. I'm at the peak of my game. I feel great. I'm in shape. My communication is way better than it was last year. My footwork, my eyes, my anticipation, my route recognition, everything has improved from last year, so I'm ready to go and see what this thing looks like."
Brown has been making the most of his practice reps against a stacked 49ers offense. He relishes the challenge of trying to disrupt Brock Purdy's passes or knock the football away from Deebo Samuel.
"Iron sharpens iron," Brown declared. "... I believe Brock is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. I believe Deebo is one of the best wide receivers. [TE George] Kittle is one of the best tight ends. [Head coach] Kyle Shanahan is one of the best offensive play callers. And we got some of the best defensive play callers and defensive players on the field. So when you're having this constant work of good on good work, you can only get better from it.
"And there's been things I've seen in practice where I'm like, 'Okay, I can get better at [that].' And there's things that I've seen in practice where I'm like, 'Okay, I had a good feel for that. I'm good. I'm comfortable there.' So you just keep going and going, and you keep learning different things about yourself, and different ways you can play inside the scheme, and you get better at that."
Brown seeks to avoid the dreaded sophomore slump, where some players struggle in their second season after early success.
"I never took the game for granted," Browns admitted. "This game, you can know it one minute, and then things get to moving fast, and you're in the wrong position. So I always preach to the [defensive backs] now about the perfect practice, still just chasing that perfect practice, whether that's alignment, assignment, steps, eyes, hips, hands, feet, having that perfect day in practice.
"You stack enough of them perfect days, then you go into the game, and you feel a lot more comfortable. But as far as the second year, I'm ready to go, and I feel better than ever."