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Monday, August 22, 2022

2022 Season Countdown: #18 Kris Jenkins, Jr.

 

Kris Jenkins, Jr. (image via MGoBlue)

Name: Kris Jenkins, Jr.
Height: 
6'3"
Weight: 
285 lbs.
High school: 
Olney (MD) Our Lady of Good Counsel
Position: 
Defensive tackle
Class: 
Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: 
#94
Last year: 
I ranked Jenkins #78 and said he would be a backup defensive tackle (LINK). He started four games and made 22 tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss.
TTB Rating:
 77

Jenkins didn't exactly have a breakout season in 2021, but he definitely made his presence felt, which is saying something for a redshirt freshman defensive lineman. Weighing in the 260s, he used his quickness, leverage, and strength to get underneath and split offensive linemen. I kept expecting to see him get blown off the ball, and it almost never happened. In Michigan's amorphous defensive front, he started a handful of games, playing 3-tech and some 5-tech. He didn't make a lot of plays, but he didn't get taken advantage of very often, either.

Jenkins has put on about 20 pounds this off-season and appears to be ready to take over for Chris Hinton at defensive tackle. There have been positive reports from practices talking about his ability to make an impact. I expect him to be a starter, but how much of a difference-maker will he be? Considering his quickness and pedigree - his dad and uncle play defensive tackle in the NFL - he has the potential to be pretty good, but whether he gets there as a redshirt sophomore is a question. I tend to think most interior defensive linemen need to get to year four or year five before they really take off. Jenkins should begin to break out this year and then 2023 could be a very good year.

Prediction: Starting defensive tackle; 35 tackles, 2 sacks

11 comments:

  1. Agree with the argument for patience, but I'm taking the over on 2 sacks.

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  2. Still waiting to see if Mike Elston os the man.

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  3. Hinton got cut and may or may not make a practice squad. That's a pretty short career.

    Many will say he made a mistake if that's the case but I'm not sure the outcomes would have been any different in 2023 than 2022.

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    1. If you've played four or five years at Michigan and started a bunch of games, you're probably going to get a decent shot in the NFL. Chris Wormley, Maurice Hurst, Ryan Glasgow, etc.

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    2. Vastardis played 6. Carlo Kemp played 5. Roy Roundtree played 5. I can go on and on. The guys who don't have the athleticism to be NFL players never will, no matter how much they polish the resume. Note: This is most players! Including many starters.

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    3. Hinton got a shot. He didn't perform. He may well get another.

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  4. Kris Jenkins: "didn't make a lot of plays, but wasn't getting blown off the ball either"

    In year 2, I'll take that! Now, let's see what he's got, because we'll need it

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    Replies
    1. FWIW, PFF has a couple of stats on him that are impressive, and they somewhat contradict Thunder’s claim that Jenkins didn’t make a ton of plays:

      1) Jenkins had a high “run stuff rate”, meaning tackles for runs of 1 yard, 0 yards, or TFL. Per their numbers, he had 15 run stuffs in 108 qualifying snaps. However, we see he only had 0.5 TFL, so he had 14.5 tackles for 0 or 1 yard. That’s really good.

      2) His 22 tackles was the most of any 1st or 2nd year DT in the country.

      Looking forward to seeing him excel and progress, even if somewhat quietly.

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    2. Addendum to my post above: On the one hand, Jenkins didn’t display much pass rush, so it remains to be seen if he can generate it. On the other hand, Mo Hurst had 3 tackles in 7 games his RS Fr year. Then in 2015, he had 35 tackles, 3 sacks and 6.5 TFL. Then in 2016 (34, 4.5, 11.5) and especially 2017 (61[!!], 5, 14.5) he became an absolute wrecking ball. Jenkins might be tracking similarly. If he has a 2015 Hurst season, as I’m expecting, that would be great for Michigan. If he has a 2016 Hurst season, the sky is the limit for this team.

      —Joby

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    3. He really did have the most tackles of every first and second year DT? That sounds too good to be true .

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  5. Nice stats Joby. For interior DL there can be a big gap between the counting stats and the eye test. Especially for rare events like sacks. Jenkins has risen up quickly and passed the eye tests which has fans excited beyond his production level. I think it's justified as circumstantial evidence (taking snaps from Jeter, coaches moving Welshof to DE) seems to support the good feelings.

    The "next Hurst" probably isn't going to ever happen (like the next version of Woodson, Braylon, Hart, etc.) but we can always hope.

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