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Jeffery letting his play do his talking

Many NFL veterans feel that rookies should be seen and not heard, but Bears second-round draft pick Alshon Jeffery takes that unwritten rule to an extreme.

“Sometimes it takes guys a little bit of time to get comfortable when they make that transition,” said receiver Brandon Marshall. “You’ll see a guy that’s as quiet as a church mouse and a couple of months later he’s talking up a torn. But I think this is his personality.

“He doesn’t say much. He doesn’t say anything at all really. But he takes it all in. In meetings he takes some notes but [you wonder], ‘Are you getting it?’ Then he gets on the football field and he makes no mistakes, and we’ve got him playing all over the place. He’s a special talent and I’m excited to see him grow.”

Jeffery let his performance do the talking in Sunday’s season opener; he caught three passes for 80 yards including a 42-yard touchdown in the Bears’ 41-21 rout of the Indianapolis Colts.

“He’s a very quiet guy, a very serious young man, and very respectful,” said offensive coordinator Mike Tice. “He does pay attention to his business and he does go out each day and work to get better, and we really like that about him. Plus he’s athletic; he can catch, he can jump, he can run and a couple other things.”

Jeffery is quickly building a rapport with quarterback Jay Cutler.

“I think more and more when we start getting one-on-one looks, he’s a guy that I’ll just throw it his way,” Cutler said. “He’s going to be like [Marshall]. You just put it in his area and he’s going to make a play for you and he’s going to protect you.

“It comes over a stretch of time of trusting him and believing him and doing it in games. That’s what he has been doing. He doesn’t say much, but he gets the job done.”