The 25-year-old Tomlinson takes a humble approach to his NFL opportunity, something that was ingrained in him during the weeklong mission trips he took every summer with Cypress Creek Christian Church from seventh grade through his senior year of high school.
"I'm a pretty simple guy," Tomlinson said with a chuckle. "I'm just a guy who blocks. And when they throw it to me, I'll make sure I catch them. But I just want to help."
"I learned that it's just a mindset," Tomlinson said. "He taught me a lot about technique in the run game and just firing off the ball, and I think that helped a lot with my blocking."
While Austin Seferian-Jenkins and rookie Jordan Leggett are considered primarily pass-catching tight ends, Tomlinson sees his fair share of snaps to help open up holes in the running game or try to hold off sack-happy defenders.
That's the gritty, unglamorous life of a so-called blocking tight end in the NFL — and Tomlinson fully embraces the role.
Tomlinson helped out at an orphanage in Mexico one year. There was a trip to the Bolivar Peninsula in Galveston, Texas, to help rebuild homes affected by Hurricane Ike in 2008. Tomlinson also traveled to Belize one summer to assist a church.

Tomlinson tries to keep everything in perspective because of those experiences, even while not being drafted or getting cut twice — or having to live in relative anonymity as an NFL player with an under-the-radar job.
He was again cut last summer, but then added to Houston's practice squad — from where the tight end-needy Jets signed him last November. Tomlinson made his NFL regular-season debut last season, playing in seven games with five starts. He had no catches, but made plenty of blocks while also contributing on special teams.
The shorter-bearded Tomlinson went undrafted in 2015, but signed with Philadelphia as a free agent. He was among the Eagles' final cuts that summer, but was immediately signed by Houston and spent his rookie season on the Texans' practice squad.
"I looked down on the field and a big chunk of my beard had gotten pulled out," Tomlinson said with a laugh.
"After that, I was like, 'OK, it's time to shave this down a little bit.' I just figured I'd grow it while I can and no one really cares. But, man, I looked down and a big patch of my beard was on the ground."
The long-haired, bushy-bearded Tomlinson is far from flashy, but he serves a vital role in the Jets' revamped offense under new coordinator John Morton.
During a game in his senior year against Kansas State,Barry Larkin Jersey, Tomlinson was sporting a long beard that flowed down past his neck. That changed in a split-second when a defender tugged at it.
"You can take a lot from basketball, as far as the footwork aspect of it," he said. "A lot of it transfers over to football."
"To me, he's one of the best people I've ever met, just as a person," Natkin said.
"It's not a huge deal to me, getting a catch,Vans Old Skool Wholesale," he said. "I mean, it would be nice, but I'm just trying to contribute any way I can, really."
Tomlinson played defensive end at Klein High School in Texas, and also was a rebound-snagging center on the basketball team. He incorporated parts of both into his game as a tight end.
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Eric Tomlinson is a big, burly tight end whose main job for the New York Jets isn't catching footballs, it's throwing blocks on defenders.
The 6-foot-6, 263-pound Tomlinson caught 59 passes for 547 yards and four touchdowns in his four-year college career, but it was his improvement in blocking that made him an NFL prospect. He worked regularly with UTEP tight ends coach Brian Natkin, a former All-American at the position for the Miners who played for the Tennessee Titans in 2001.
"In this league, you're going up against great guys every week on defense," Tomlinson said,Fjallraven Kanken Backpack Australia, "so if you can go out there and block them consistently, I guess you're considered a blocking tight end."
Tomlinson has worn that label — part-tight end, part-fullback, part-offensive lineman — well since his college days at UTEP as an immovable wall at the line of scrimmage for the Miners.
"He's one of the rare ones," Natkin said in a telephone interview. "He was a willing blocker and that's half of it. He's physical by nature and he really was a strong blocker before I met him, but that attitude that he had to block — that's what he wanted to do. He caught some balls, but his main thing was he wanted to block people."
"You look at all of these people deal with adversity and they bounce back and they're as happy