San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Ricardo Lockette has said that teammate A.J. Jenkins will surprise people in the 2013 season.

The 49ers used their first-round draft pick last year to sign the 23-year-old, but he featured in just three games during the 2012 NFL season.

Lockette told The Sacramento Bee: "I think A.J. will definitely surprise a lot of people this year. Last year, he took it as a building year. This year from what I've seen so far, it's night and day.

"I expect big things out of him. He expects big things out of himself, and [quarterback Colin Kaepernick] expects big things out of him. I think Niner nation and the Niner empire will be proud of what A.J. Jenkins brings to the field this year."

Jenkins has spent part of the off-season working with Lockette and Kaepernick in a bid to play a bigger role for the Super Bowl runners-up in 2013.