Being compared to players such as Antonio Gates and Jimmy Graham is one thing.
But Browns tight end Jordan Cameron wants everyone to know he’s not just a former basketball player.
Cameron’s three-touchdown outburst Sunday revealed the potential people have long seen in him, but he had yet to deliver on. He exceeded his career touchdown total in last week’s game alone, and his 20 catches in three games equals his 2012 total.
“It feels good,” Cameron said, via Tony Grossi of ESPNCleveland.com. “I’ve been working for so long it seems like forever. I’ve been very patient. I just put my head down and kept grinding every day. Just trying to focus on the little things.
“Sometimes you get caught up in hearing everyone else saying, ‘You’re not going to make it. You’re not good enough. You’re just a basketball player. You’re not athletic enough.” I haven’t made it by all means. I have a lot of work to do. I’ve got to keep progressing each week. But it’s just one of those things that I’m just happy it’s paid off and I was there for my teammates when we won the game.”
The fact he started at BYU on a basketball scholarship and walked on at Southern Cal is part of his backstory now, and draws an obvious line to the athletic mismatches such as Gates and Graham.
“Frankly, I’m tired of hearing about basketball,” Cameron said. “I’m not a basketball player. I’m a football player now. I guess it helps for these tight ends, nowadays, to be from basketball backgrounds, but I don’t want to be known as a basketball player.”
If he continues to make plays at his current rate, he’ll take care of that himself.
For more with Cameron, check out this clip from yesterday’s PFT Live.