DB Malcolm Jenkins (All B1G, All-American, Thorpe Award, All-Pro, 2x Super Bowl Champion)

[NFBuck]

Mel has MJ going lower than just about anyone doing a mock right now. I personally think he is off on this one and MJ will still be the first CB taken in the top 15 picks.



NFL Draft - Tuesday with Mel Kiper Jr. - ESPN

Kiper's a fucking moron. All that hairspray has begun penetrating his skull.

 

[Buckskin86]

Defensive back prospect Jenkins' 'solidness' may appeal to Thompson
BY PETE DOUGHERTY ? [email protected] ? April 19, 2009

Malcolm Jenkins is the kind of wart-free first-round draft pick that could appeal to a general manager of Ted Thompson?s tastes.

Holding the No. 9 pick overall in a draft that appears short on elite talent, the Green Bay Packers? GM has shown an inclination for making the safe pick and could feel a strong inclination again this year with Ohio State?s Jenkins, who might be the safest player available at No. 9 overall, though he won?t be the most talented or dynamic.

The question is whether taking him at No. 9 is too high. Jenkins is the best defensive-back prospect in this draft, a big (6-foot-1, 204 pounds), athletic and instinctive player who could line up at cornerback or safety. But he lacks top-end straight-line speed, and scouts are decidedly mixed on whether No. 9 overall is too high, or whether he should go somewhere in the middle of the first round.

?With the way he runs, (No. 9) might be a little bit of a reach,? said a personnel director for an AFC team. ?But he?s kind of got the (Wake Forest linebacker) Aaron Curry safeness, solidness about him. The guy?s going to be a good player that you?ll get enough value out of the pick. Even if you have to reach two, three, four spots I think it?s worth doing. It Seems like Green Bay is always drafting big corners. He?s a good, well rounded player. He?d fit pretty well with what they do. He?s kind of a poorer version of Charles Woodson back in his day, a guy that could play the corner and eventually move inside (to safety), or start as a safety if you really wanted him to.?

?Everybody?s getting off him because of the speed factor, but he?s a good football player,? said the scouting director for another team. ?If you take out all the gymnastics stuff (in testing) ? everybody wants those guys in the first round to be a blazer, but a lot of those (blazer) guys don?t pan out either because they?re not good football players. He?s played some safety, corner, he?s got a lot of production on the ball. Somebody?s going to get a good football player whoever drafts him.?

Defensive back prospect Jenkins' 'solidness' may appeal to Thompson | greenbaypressgazette.com | Green Bay Press-Gazette

 

[billmac91]

again, the same AFC scout that planted the quote "he may be a reach at #9" would love to see Malcolm slide to his team wherever they are drafting later in the round I'm sure.

Stuff like this is expected every draft. Players supposedly rising/falling depending on what teams leak evaluations to serve their purposes.

All of a sudden Mark Sanchez is rising b/c the Browns are set on him. Are the Browns really set on him, or are they leveraging themselves?

Does that scout really think Malcolm is a reach at #9, or would that same scout like to take Malcolm at #14?

 

[Buckskin86]

Covering all needs: OSU's Malcolm Jenkins building reputation for versatility as draft nears
by Doug Lesmerises/Plain Dealer Reporter
Monday April 20, 2009

Michael Conroy/Associated Press
A combination of coverage and run-stopping physicality have made Ohio State's Malcolm Jenkins the consensus top available defensive back in Saturday's first round of the NFL draft.
Browns looking at receivers this week

COLUMBUS -- Two years ago, Ohio State took its best cover corner and turned him into a safety on passing downs, a move the Buckeyes decided by the next season wasn't in the best interests of their defense. It may have helped Malcolm Jenkins, though.

The draft debate that has surrounded the former Buckeye, whether he's a corner or a safety in the NFL, is simplified by the fact that Jenkins at least has that safety experience. All four of Jenkins' interceptions that junior season came at safety, where he showed an instinct for the ball. In 49 college games primarily at corner, he locked on opponents' best receivers and displayed an affinity for contact when jumping up to stop the run.

"I played both at the same time," Jenkins said. "I can do a lot and in the NFL, the more you can do, the longer you can last."

Teams considering Jenkins can pick him knowing they have options. Where he goes, and 11 draft analysts on NFL.com, ESPN.com, and CBSSports.com project Jenkins between No. 9 and No. 25, with an average draft position of 17th, will depend on how much of a game-changer they consider him to be and if they need help on the back end. He's probably more likely on the Browns' radar if they trade down from the No. 5 position, though he'd certainly fill a hole somewhere in their defensive backfield.


There's really no question that, whether at safety or corner, he's the best defensive back prospect in the draft, just as he was named the Thorpe Award winner as the best defensive back in college as a senior.

"It really comes down to what teams need," Jenkins said. "Look, at say, the Browns. It looks like they want either a defensive end or a corner. It comes down to which they think is better, either [Texas' Brian] Orakpo or the best corner."

Covering all needs: OSU's Malcolm Jenkins building reputation for versatility as draft nears - cleveland.com

 

[OH10]

People always talk about the "safest pick in the draft." It's this guy. He's very good in coverage but he would be the best cornerback in the NFL against the run and he makes plays with the ball in this hand.

If you have that kind of talent, you're a safe pick. When you add his versatility and impeccable character, you're the safest pick.

 

[OregonBuckeye]

Scout.com: 2009 NFL Draft - The Cornerbacks

Fiutak with the hyperbole again.

1. Malcolm Jenkins, Ohio State 6-0, 204
He has everything but speed. With good size and toughness, he?s terrific against bigger receivers ad has no problems being physical, even though he doesn?t show great weight room strength. For his size he has phenomenal quickness, coming up with a Combine best time (for the corners) in the cone drill and one of the best in the shuttle. However, he came up with a glacier-slow 4.54 in the 40 exposing his lack of pure deep speed. While he?ll be started out at corner, and will be more than fine, he could really shine down the road with a few years of experience and a move to free safety. For now, he won?t be asked to deal with too many blazers and will likely have to try to erase the bigger targets. But for where he?s picked and the money he?ll make, he needs to be a No. 1 corner and that just might not be in him.
CFN Projection: First Round

A 4.54 is never "glacier-slow" no matter what position you play. That statement is even more ridiculous when you consider the fastest time by a DB was only about a 4.45.

 

[3074326]

Glacier-slow?

 

[Buckskin86]

Is Jenkins a corner or a safety?
Pat Yasinskas, ESPN:

ESPN analyst and former NFL coach Herm Edwards has a pretty strong opinion on what the future should hold for Ohio State defensive back Malcolm Jenkins.

Although a lot of people are projecting Jenkins to move from cornerback to safety in the NFL, Edwards has a different view.

"All you have to do is turn the tape on," Edwards said in a conference call with the media. "The tape doesn't lie, and how this guy plays football, you want him on your team. You let him play corner and see if he can play. There's been a lot of corners that don't run 4.4s and play in this league. Most of our corners in this league don't run 4.4. I think this guy is a solid football player."

That makes some sense and few know defensive backs better than Edwards, who played defensive back in the NFL and was a secondary coach before becoming a head coach. The Saints and Buccaneers are the two NFC South teams that could have a shot at drafting Jenkins.

Is Jenkins a corner or a?safety? - Canal Street Chronicles

 

[Buckskin86]

For Piscataway grad and Ohio State cornerback Malcolm Jenkins, the next step is the first round
by Jenny Vrentas/The Star-Ledger
Wednesday April 22, 2009

Aaron J. Latham/Associated Press
It wouldn't be a stretch for Piscataway product Malcolm Jenkins to be off the draft board in the first 20 picks.

Malcolm Jenkins was 7 when he started playing Pop Warner football in Piscataway, a third-string center who saw the field only for the number of downs all kids were required to get. It wasn't until years later when his parents learned why he stuck it out.

"Here we were thinking he got it, he understood the benefits of the game," his mother, Gwendolyn, recalled recently. "But he was looking forward to the hot dogs and free soda."

Before Jenkins was the 2008 winner of the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation's top defensive back, a four-year starter at powerhouse Ohio State, and a three-time state champion at Piscataway High, he was a kid who never saw a football future past the fifth grade. Actually, even when he was accomplishing all those things, he wasn't eyeing the NFL.

"I was probably the last one to realize it," Jenkins said.

During the NFL Draft this weekend, Jenkins will be far from last. Instead, he'll be one of the first defensive backs -- likely the first -- to be selected in the opening round. NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock doesn't see Jenkins lasting past pick No. 20, possibly not even past the Saints at No. 14.

At 6-0, 205 pounds, Jenkins has excellent size, range and instincts. But even though he played almost exclusively at cornerback in college, his 4.56 40 time at the Scouting Combine spurred debate about whether he has the elite speed for non-Cover-2 schemes -- or if he projects better as a safety.

Longtime NFL talent evaluator Charley Casserly, now an analyst for the NFL Network, expects Jenkins' highest value to be at safety, though three of the five teams which brought Jenkins in for a visit -- the Jets, Titans and Broncos -- told him they see him at cornerback.

"If you are looking for a corner and are looking for a good football player, you don't need to start questioning yourself," former Jets and Chiefs coach Herman Edwards said. "There have been a lot of corners in this league that don't run a 4.4. ... If you have any concerns, all you've got to do is just turn the tape on."

For Piscataway grad and Ohio State cornerback Malcolm Jenkins, the next step is the first round - NJ.com

 

[*OSUBucknut10*]

This whole slow talk is getting real old.

Jerry Rice was never a blazer, but with his exceptional skill it didn't much matter now did it.

I'm not saying Malcolm will be the Jerry Rice of DB's, but man are so many scouts stupid. Since when is 4.54 slow? He ran less then a half second more than most DB's, and this is straight speed quickness not anything more. Do the "experts" realize that game speed is not nearl the same as track speed? Sure a guy can lace up and run a 4.4, but do you really think with pads the difference is anything to think about? I don't....... That supposed lack of speed didn't seem to keep him from winning the Thorpe award either.

So lets see, teams should pass on him in the top 10 because he ran a whopping .5 seconds slower then the fastest DB. So teams will pass on the fact he is a sure tackler, excellent in cover locking down his man, great hands, and can stuff the run almost as well as a LBer just because of an overrated 40 yard stat time?

Tell you what I'd sure be fine with it if my Browns were to pick him at #5.

Sometimes I wonder how scouts are considered "experts" at their jobs. Jenkins is one of the top 2 safest picks in the draft, but this whole speed issue is so overrated.

 

[BB73]

So lets see, teams should pass on him in the top 10 because he ran a whopping .5 seconds slower then the fastest DB.

Well, if he was .5 seconds slower, I'd pass on him. But if the difference was only .05 seconds ...

 

[Poe McKnoe]

Well, if he was .5 seconds slower, I'd pass on him. But if the difference was only .05 seconds ...

I'm not a math major, but 4.54-4.45 = 0.09 seconds. That's almost a whole 0.1 second slower!!! 100 milliseconds or even worse, 1x10^8 nanoseconds!!!! :(

If Malcolm was a computer, he'd be screwed. Luckily, he's just the best cornerback in the draft.

 

[BB73]

Malcolm made CFN's list of "Who's hot" in the draft.

CFN

Malcolm Jenkins, CB Ohio State

The negative buzz has settled down after Jenkins ran a painfully slow 4.54 at the Combine. He was slipping as an elite, No. 1 corner prospect who deserved the big payday a top 20 pick would command, but the slide has stopped. From all indications, teams are looking at Jenkins for what he is and what he can be and aren't as focused on the lack of raw speed. New Orleans might be thinking about a running back, but it's unlikely that Jenkins will slip any further than the 14 with the Saints trying him out at corner and possibly grooming him as a safety.

 

[utgrad73]

I'm not a math major, but 4.54-4.45 = 0.09 seconds. That's almost a whole 0.1 second slower!!! 100 milliseconds or even worse, 1x10^8 nanoseconds!!!! :(

If Malcolm was a computer, he'd be screwed. Luckily, he's just the best cornerback in the draft.

That 40 time is not the only measure of how good he is. I agree that some seem obsessed with it maybe because it's one of those tangibles that's out there for all to see. Maybe it's much harder to see all those other things that he does so well when all they see are those milliseconds. Whovever drafts MJ won't be disappointed.

 

[*OSUBucknut10*]

I'm not a math major, but 4.54-4.45 = 0.09 seconds. That's almost a whole 0.1 second slower!!! 100 milliseconds or even worse, 1x10^8 nanoseconds!!!! :(

If Malcolm was a computer, he'd be screwed. Luckily, he's just the best cornerback in the draft.

Whatever the very minute irrelevant amount of difference is :)
So 0.1 seconds dignifies him as slow? Reading some of these "experts" calling him "painfully slow" for .01 seconds drives me mad. Haha since when is 4.54 slow? I wish I could run that....

They need to start having the guys do the 40 in full pads... at least that would be a little bit better of something to gauge on.

Oh well whoever gets MJ tomorrow is going to be very lucky.... I'd still be fine if the Browns somehow got into the mix and got him say if we traded Braylon for a mid-to-late first rounder...