Vernon Davis built a strong rapport with former quarterback Alex Smith. They were teammates for seven seasons with the San Francisco 49ers and shared a hotel room for the past two training camps.
Davis reminisced about his former quarterback on Monday, four days before the 49ers face the Kansas City Chiefs in a preseason matchup.
"It's a business," San Francisco's starting tight end said when Smith's name was brought up. "I wish Alex all the best. I know he's going to be do everything he can to be great."
Davis went on to focus on the relationship he's quickly formed with new starting quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
It began to truly click during last season's week-long road trip in Youngstown, Ohio.
Kaepernick, the No. 2 quarterback at the time, had just begun to earn limited playing time on offense. Kaepernick confided his desire to play more to the tight end during a dinner in Ohio.
"He just started talking to me," Davis said. "He opened up.
"He was like 'Vernon, I want to show everybody what I can do.'
"I was like, 'Colin, it'll come. Just keep your faith and believe and your time will come.'"
Davis admitted he didn't think Kaepernick would be the team's starting quarterback back then.
"I thought Alex would always be here," Davis said.
The bigger aspect of the exchange was Kaepernick's willingness to discuss his career path with Davis.
"That just tells me right there, this is a good kid," Davis said. "I can open up to him, he can open up to me and we can develop something. That's what we've been doing. We've been developing a relationship off the field as well as on the field."
The Davis-Kaepernick relationship continues to be one of the most talked about aspects of 49ers camp.
On Sunday, the passing duo remained in perfect harmony. Davis hauled in a 60-yard touchdown pass and a pair of 40-yard throws from Kaepernick.
"We took care of business," Davis said of the near flawless practice.
The 49ers tight end consistently beat double-coverage, just like he's been doing for much of camp.
Davis also revealed that he's been playing all over the field this offseason. Davis has noticeably lined out flexed wide, as most pass-catching tight ends do around the league, but Davis specified the assignments he's been carrying out this summer.
"With them playing me in different spots, I'm playing 'Z,' I'm playing 'X,' I'm 'F,' I'm all over the place," Davis said. "I think that distracts our opponents from double-teaming me and triple-teaming me. It's a good thing that they've got me learning so much more. It helps with situations like that."
Davis feels like all the attention he's commanding will only benefit his teammates.
"They can try to double- and triple-team me and we've got other answers," he said.
Davis pointed to second-year wideout A.J. Jenkins as a player to watch.
Much like his conversation with Kaepernick, Davis has been speaking regularly with Jenkins to help his progress.
"He has a lot of potential," Davis said of the former first-round pick. "He's still learning the game.
"I explained to him that when he comes to work, he's got to be serious. You've got to be serious about this, you can't play. You've got to learn as much as you can and get better and grow. Not just as an athlete, but as a person.
"He's got time. We can't rush him. It's on him to change his mindset and take off."
As for Davis' mindset heading into a road game against Smith, his former training camp roommate and friend, the business aspect exceeds the personal side of it.
"We've got to do what we need to do over here to get back to that moment, that moment, meaning the Super Bowl," he said.
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