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Jenkins heading to the Jets as a nose tackle
By PFW staff
Feb. 29, 2008
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Kris Jenkins
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The Jets finally have the wide-bodied nose tackle they’ve so desperately longed for since Eric Mangini came to New York and instituted the 3-4 defense. On Friday, the Jets traded third- and fifth-round draft picks to the Panthers for Kris Jenkins. The 6-4, 335 Jenkins is expected to immediately be inserted into the starting lineup at the NT spot previously held by Dewayne Robertson. All seven of Jenkins' NFL seasons had been spent in Carolina, where last year he recorded 38 tackles and 2½ sacks.
The PFW spin
There have been a host of reasons Mangini’s 3-4 system has failed to work, but chief among them was the lack of a prototypical nose tackle to tie up the interior of the offensive line. Robertson is a traditional 4-3, three-technique defensive tackle who had been playing out of position at the nose for the last two years. While the 28-year-old Jenkins has played in a 4-3 his entire career in Carolina, his size lends itself to the 3-4 scheme.
Jenkins has wanted out of Carolina for the last few years, in part because he wanted to be closer to his roots — he went to high school in Michigan and college at Maryland. He has two years left on his deal and is scheduled to earn a base of $2.95 million in 2008 and $3.71 million in 2009.
Jenkins should upgrade a run defense unit that ranked 29th in the league in 2007 and 24th in 2006. He was considered the best lineman in Carolina in ’07, even better than the more touted Julius Peppers. In his seven-year career, he has 215 tackles and 20½ sacks.
The question now becomes: What will the Jets do with Robertson? As PFW has reported throughout the season, he’s a good bet to be traded. It almost certainly would be to a team that favors the 4-3 system. He could probably attract a third-round draft pick. If the Jets are unable to trade him, they would probably keep him instead of cutting him. He’s not that much of a salary-cap liability considering they have plenty of cap room. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him get some repetitions at defensive end, however.
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