Former Parramatta Eels star Jarryd Hayne has announced a rookie deal with NFL team the San Francisco 49ers, ahead of their 2015 season.
The former NRL player was also recently linked to the Detroit Lions and Seattle Seahawks, but today he thanked those teams for their interest before announcing that he would be a part of the San Francisco 49ers in 2015.
27-year-old Jarryd Hayne said he agreed to a rookie contract with the team, reports the ABC, worth $US100,000 and which guarantees him a spot at the club for 15-20 weeks.
Jarryd Hayne announced his departure from Australia’s NRL last October with the news that he would be pursuing a career in the NFL.
He said today that he initially rejected the idea of going to San Francisco because of the turmoil surrounding then-coach Jim Harbaugh, but was convinced to come over by Harbaugh’s replacement Jim Tomsula.
Tomsula boasts experience as a coach in NFL Europe and thus has dealt with the transition of rugby players moving into the US’s NFL.
“When he became head coach, I rang my agent back and said ‘the one guy I spent the most time with is the new head coach’,” he said. Hayne said he accepted the 49ers’ “serious offer” last Friday. He added that team management had indicated his likely position would be running back.
“It feels surreal to me, it’s a small step in the right direction. The hard stuff starts now,” he said. “A lot of boys are interested, but they don’t have the confidence and faith that I have. You’ve got to go all in, I’ve got no back-up plan. I’m putting all my chips on the table, whatever happens, happens.”
Jarryd Hayne will return to the US and will officially start training with San Francisco on April 10th.
