Rising star shines all over
Versatile Jenkins could be a Pro Bowl regular
GREEN BAY – The Green Bay Packers went into this season having to replace departed free agent Bryan Bulaga at right tackle.
Then they lost starting right guard Lane Taylor (ACL tear) for the season in the opener and opened Week 2 against Detroit with Billy Turner, their preferred right tackle, not healthy enough for the starting lineup though he was a gameday active if needed.
Yet two weeks into the season, the Packers' line is off to a strong start for an offense putting up impressive numbers: 76 points scored (by the offense), 1,010 yards, 417 rushing yards, a 6.2yard average per carry and no sacks allowed.
By season's end we might look back and say Minnesota and Detroit were two of the weaker defenses the Packers faced, but still, the team's offensive line has been an unexpected strength considering the circumstances. And while it's been a collective effort, it's worth singling out Elgton Jenkins, the versatile offensive lineman who played left guard against the Lions.
Jenkins is a rare player who appears
capable of playing all five offensive line positions at an NFL level. He was mostly a center in college and could end up playing there as his primary position before his career is over. He’s already played some right tackle this season and could eventually move there permanently, depending on how the Packers’ roster building goes in the next few years. And he’s by all appearances athletic enough to bump out to left tackle in a pinch.
But Jenkins has mostly been a guard for the Packers and has quickly developed into an excellent player there, as we saw again in the Packers’ 41-21 win over the Lions on Sunday. He’s one of the several reasons the Packers are running the ball so well early this season. He’s their best run blocker and despite being a relatively big guy for his position (6-5, 311 pounds) has the quick feet to come off combo blocks and wall off smaller, quicker linebackers at the second level of the defense. That’s what makes some of these runs go.
Look no further than Aaron Jones’ 75-yard touchdown on the first play of the second half that helped break the game open for the Packers. There were several good blocks on that play – center Corey Linsley engulfed linebacker Jarrad Davis in the heart of the Lions’ defense, for instance – but Jenkins’ was worth a second look.
Jenkins started the play by teaming with left tackle David Bakhtiari on a combo block on Trey Flowers and then released to take on inside linebacker Jamie Collins. Jenkins was quick enough to latch onto the athletic Collins and win that matchup, which allowed Jones to shoot past his shoulder and through the middle of the Lions’ defense on his way to a long touchdown on which he was barely touched.
Another textbook play came on a Jamaal Williams run early in the third quarter, with 13:09 left. Usually the goal of an offensive lineman is to get his hips turned so the back of his jersey is facing the sideline. That’s what gives a running back a lane. It takes strength and athleticism.
On this play, Williams hit the line of scrimmage through a gap just to Linsley’s right. But because Jenkins was able to get his hips turned while blocking Collins a couple of gaps over to the left, Williams saw the back of Jenkins’ dark green jersey and the big lane behind it. So Williams bounced the run through that gap and had a huge alley into the secondary. He picked up 18 big yards on a run straight down the Lions’ gullet, the kind of run that demoralizes a defense.
Good offensive line play is a collective effort, and backup Lucas Patrick is proving to be a godsend with his ability to hold up well at all three interior positions. Bakhtiari is one of the best left tackles in the league, and though he’s known primarily for protecting Aaron Rodgers’ backside against premier rushers, he’s a pretty decent run blocker, too. With Linsley, Jenkins and Bakhtiari, the Packers have one of the best offensive lines in the league from center through left tackle.
Brian Gutekunst, the Packers’ general manager, has missed on some early picks, such as Josh Jackson and Oren Burks in the second and third rounds of the 2018 draft. But you have to credit him for hitting pretty big on Jenkins in the second round in 2019. There’s good reason to think Jenkins has some Pro Bowls in his future no matter what position he ends up playing.
Defense rests
Kenny Clark’s absence (groin injury) didn’t end up hurting the Packers as much as their defense’s bad first quarter suggested it might.
Detroit put up touchdowns without much resistance the first two times it got the ball, but as the game wore on and the Lions went more into pass mode as they fell behind, Dean Lowry did an OK job replacing Clark as an inside pass rusher even though it didn’t show on the stat sheet (zero sacks or hits).
One of the biggest plays of the game was Za’Darius Smith’s sack of Matthew Stafford at the Lions’ 1 near the end of the first half. That was the key to the Packers’ getting the ball back with a quick stop and putting up a touchdown in the final seconds of the half that gave them a 17-14 lead and the chance to double-up with a score to start the second half.
Lowry isn’t the pass rusher Clark is, but on that play he helped Smith get the sack. Lowry and Rashan Gary ran a stunt on the left side of the defensive line, with Lowry looping behind Gary. Lowry in effect became the outside rusher and got far enough upfield that when Gary collapsed the pocket and Stafford tried to escape off the edge there was nowhere to go. That moment’s hesitation by Stafford gave Smith time to slip off his block and drop Stafford at the 1.
Extra points
● Tight end Robert Tonyan ran a great route on his 11-yard touchdown catch late in the second quarter.
He was matched with a cornerback, Tracy Walker, on the play, so he had a size advantage but didn’t have the edge in athleticism. Yet Tonyan won the play less because of his size than his footwork. When he got near the top of his route it looked like he was going to run an out, but then he stopped on a dime and pivoted while Walker slipped anticipating the out route. Tonyan then caught a perfectly thrown ball to his inside shoulder.
● One of the questions on the Packers’ defense coming into the season was nickel corner, where Chandon Sullivan was making the jump from a part-time backup No. 4 cornerback to essentially a starter as the slot cover man. This game was a big test because he was facing Danny Amendola, an accomplished slot receiver, and Sullivan came out of it on top.
Amendola worked Sullivan early – on back-to-back plays in the second quarter, he beat Sullivan on a circle route but was overthrown by Stafford, and then converted a third-and-10 on an out pattern the next play. But that was Amendola’s only catch of the day. And in the third quarter Sullivan made one of the plays of the game when he jumped a quick out route to Amendola and returned it seven yards for a touchdown.