Right tackle Anthony Davis celebrated his 49ers contract extension in April with a poke at his college coach.
Davis, in a quickly deleted Tweet, wrote the following:
You will be a 1 contract and done kinda guy in the NFL – Greg Schiano. Lol
Schiano, now the coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, remembers making the point to Davis. He said he drew on his experience as a defensive coach with the Chicago Bears to encourage Davis to take full advantage of his talent during their time together at Rutgers.
“I’d told him stories about guys that can either go and become long-term NFL players and get their second and third contract,” Schiano said Wednesday on a conference call with Bay Area reporters. “Or they can be fizzle-out guys. I wanted to make sure that Anthony . . . he was talented enough to get second, third and fourth contracts, really. He’s that good of an athlete, really. And he’s well on his way now.”
Davis, who has started all 61 games at right tackle for the 49ers since becoming a first-round pick in 2010, signed a seven-year, $37.295 million contract extension through the 2019 season. The deal included a $7.5 million signing bonus.
“Anthony was a great young man when I got to coach him at Rutgers,” Schiano said. “He was local kid – a Piscataway kid who stayed home. That took a lot of guts. He was as highly recruited as any kid in the country. He stayed him for the local school, and I’m forever indebted to Anthony for doing that.
“I know I got under his skin sometimes. I’ve worked for some great people, and they’ve all said the same thing, ‘Don’t worry about the five or 10 years while you’re coaching them or just after. Be concerned 20 years down the road. Do they thank you and respect you?’ And I hope that’s what Anthony will feel because I did push him, but I love him and I think he’s a great player and a great person.”
The 49ers travel to face the Buccaneers on Sunday.
