B.J. Daniels was in Seattle’s locker room Thursday preparing for his first practice with a new team. On Tuesday, Daniels, a seventh-round pick out of South Florida, was released by the San Francisco 49ers, who had hoped to get him on to their practice squad, only to have Seattle claim him on waivers.
On the process of changing teams, Daniels said, “It’s different. I’ve never had to experience it before with me being a rookie, switching teams, but it’s kind of like starting over. I’m just trying to pick up the system. The team has welcomed me in and I’m glad to be here.
“It was a surprise to me. I didn’t know what to expect, I’ve never gone through this, so for them to put me on waivers and get picked up by Seattle to continue to be in the NFL and be on the 53-man roster is a blessing, so I’m just thankful and appreciative.”
Obviously fans on both sides of the Seahawks-49ers rivalry will have an opinion on the move, but Daniels isn’t worried about that.
“That’s not something I can pay attention to right now,” he said. “This is my new home, this is my new team, and whatever I can do to help out Seattle is what I’m going to try to do.
As for the notion that the Seahawks claimed Daniels to spite the 49ers, who earlier this year claimed rookie Chris Harper, a player the Seahawks had hoped to get on to their practice squad, Daniels isn’t buying it.
“I don’t agree with that at all,” he said. “Through the draft process, I had Seattle come and work me out in a private workout, so this is a place I actually thought I would go to in the draft. I guess it worked out that I’m here.”
Some might also suggest the Seahawks are hoping to learn 49ers secrets by signing Daniels, but he dismissed that idea as well.
“That’s all overrated,” he said. “Honestly it doesn’t help anyway. It’s just one of those big running jokes that doesn’t really mean a whole lot.”
At 5-11, Daniels has been compared to Russell Wilson, and said he has tried to learn from his new teammate.
“He’s definitely a guy that I watched,” Daniels said. “There are a lot of great athletic quarterbacks that I’ve paid attention to and I’ve tried to take bits and pieces from every one to try to help my game. I learned some things from (Colin Kaepernick), and now being here I’ll see if I can learn anything from Russell and (Tarvaris Jackson).”
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