There's a lot to deal with as an NFL rookie. First, you have to do everything expected of you leading to the draft, which eats up the time until late-April. Then you have to fulfill several rookie commitments for the NFL and your new team. On top of all that, you likely find yourself preparing to live in a new area and have to acclimate to your new home quickly.
An NFL rookie has to do all of that while trying to learn a new playbook, which for the San Francisco 49ers offense, is complex.
All of that is behind tackle Mike McGlinchey now. He is preparing to enter his second NFL season and will do so with the experience of 16 starts under his belt. McGlinchey was on the stage for the 49ers' State of the Franchise event on Wednesday night and was asked what it is like heading into his sophomore NFL season and what he worked on to improve this offseason.
"I think any time you're going in from year one to year two, you just are so much more confident in everything that you're doing," McGlinchey responded. "I've worked on every part of my game. I can't really narrow down a specific part over the last six months or so.
"Coming in last year and not having any grasp of what was going on, thrown in as the day one starter, you kind of feel like you're swimming the whole season. It was hard. It was hard to navigate through everything that was going on, on top of trying to get a hold of your life out here as well."
McGlinchey finished last season as Pro Football Focus' highest-graded rookie tackle and the second-highest graded rookie offensive lineman.
"This year, I'm settled in here in the Bay Area now," McGlinchey continued. "I have the whole offense down, and ready to go for year two, and just being able to make decisions a lot faster, and keep Jimmy (Garoppolo) upright, and let Jet (Jerick McKinnon) and Matt (Breida) run through a lot of holes."