Nearly all of Anthony Firkser’s teammates had left the practice field long before, but the Jets rookie fullback lingered a bit longer, signing autographs for several children screaming for a player who never heard his name called in the NFL draft.
“They were all excited, and I’m like, ‘How do you guys know my name?’ ” Firkser said. “It’s been a pretty surreal experience.”
Less than four months ago, the Harvard product had a draft party on the event’s final day, hoping he might hear his name called in the final round. After 253 disappointing selections, the draft was done.
Minutes later, the party picked up, as Firkser was contacted by the Jets, who were interested in bringing him to New Jersey as a free agent.
“I was happy to get any opportunity to compete,” Firkser said. “I was excited for anything.”
Any team would have sufficed. Any opportunity would have been amazing.
But few teams offered him the chance to train roughly an hour from his hometown of Manalapan, N.J. Few places would have made it possible for him to practice in front of his father and grandmother and high school coach, who got a kick out of Thursday’s autograph session.
“It’s been cool being so close by,” Firkser said. “When [the Jets] got in the picture, it was cool that it was an option, and that it ended up that way. … I didn’t think this was going to be the future for me.”
As a tight end at Harvard, a future involving professional football became easier to envision, playing alongside a pair of future NFL tight ends — Tampa Bay’s Cameron Brate and Chicago’s Ben Braunecker.
“It was great being in the same room, working with those guys, and seeing how they’ve been able to take it to the next level,” said Firkser, who recently trained with Braunecker. “He was giving me some points about what to expect.”
How could the 22-year-old know what to expect, though? Last year, Firkser was blocking against Brown and Cornell and Dartmouth. Now, he’s lining up against Muhammad Wilkerson and Sheldon Richardson and Leonard Williams.
“Coming from Harvard, a [FCS] program, I didn’t know how it would compare out there with the speed, physicality, size, and everything,” Firkser said. “I’m doing my best to work every day and get ready, and learn the playbook. It’s been a great experience so far.”
Competing for the fullback spot with 24-year-old Julian Howsare, Firkser, an applied mathematics major, said he believes his time at an Ivy League school could be instrumental in him potentially finding a place on the team.
“A big part of this is being a student of the game, and that’s helped me prepare for this level,” Firkser said. “Maybe my athleticism might not be top notch like some of the guys here, but just being able to learn the playbook as quickly as possible, be in the right spots, be in the right formation, absorbing the information that the coaches are telling you, going through the academics at Harvard helped me.”
Firkser said he doesn’t know how his playing career will pan out, but he already has plans for after football, expecting to work in financial consulting. He has little concern about the potential long-term repercussions of playing such a physical position.
“The [concussion] protocols they have are really taking it seriously,” Firkser said “Coaches are coaching it well, not putting your head down. I trust what they’re doing.”
However long Firkser plays, it’s already been incredible. Even a practice — kids screaming his name, and is family looking on — feels like a dream.
“I’m just trying to soak it in and make the most of it while it lasts,” Firkser said.