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Teams not throwing Jenkins' way
• By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_1b9bdc6a-cc90-5cab-9af4-f50bb8a1165f.html
On Green Bay’s first pass play of the day, quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw deep down the left sideline toward wide receiver Ty Montgomery. Rams cornerback Janoris Jenkins was in tight coverage and the pass fell incomplete.
After that, Rodgers gave Jenkins the “Richard Sherman” treatment during the Rams’ 24-10 loss Oct. 11. Rodgers threw 29 additional passes that day at Lambeau Field; not one of those 29 was thrown in the direction of Jenkins, whose stat line consisted of all zeroes. No tackles, no interceptions, no pass breakups. ...
“It was boring, but at the same time I still had to play football,” Jenkins said. “I couldn’t go to sleep out there because it was A-Rod. In my mind every play I was just thinking he was gonna come over there anyway.”
But Rodgers didn’t. Much was made of the fact that Rodgers didn’t throw at Sherman, the much-heralded Seattle cornerback, a year ago when the Packers and Seahawks met in their 2014 season opener.
Perhaps Rodgers was showing similar respect to Jenkins.
“I see it as a sign of respect,” Jenkins said. “But at the same time, he probably saw something on the other side that he liked better. Probably match-up wise or whatever.”
A week earlier in Arizona, Jenkins was involved in a couple of high-profile plays — one good (an acrobatic interception) and one bad (a pass interference penalty). But otherwise, Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer didn’t throw much in Jenkins’ direction either.
“Most times, what I’ve been noticing the first five weeks, teams are basically trying me with the double move,” Jenkins said. “If they don’t have any success with that, they just go away from me. But like I said, I just stay on top of my game and don’t go to sleep out there.”
The Montgomery route against Jenkins in the Green Bay game was a double move — a stutter-and-go to be precise. But Jenkins didn’t take the bait.
He has, of course, taken the bait in the past and that has led to some feast-or-famine moments for the fourth-year pro.
The feast has come in the form of six defensive touchdowns scored by Jenkins since entering the league in 2012 — more than any other NFL player. One of those TDs came on a recovered fumble; the other five have come on interception returns for TDs, a total that ties the franchise record for career “pick 6s.”
The famine has come when Jenkins has gambled, going for the interception and getting beaten for TDs by receivers fooling him with double moves.
But such plays have been few and far between lately. Jenkins is playing well entering Sunday’s home game with Cleveland, displaying more game-to-game consistency than he has displayed in the past.
Pro Football Focus has him ranked 16th among all NFL cornerbacks in terms of overall grade. Opposing quarterbacks have only a 79.3 passer rating against him according to PFF.
While acknowledging that the gambling and double moves have resulted in some problems in the past, Jenkins feels he’s playing some of the best ball of his career.
“Yeah I do,” he said. “I say that to myself, that I’m finally 100 percent. No nagging injuries. I’m not out there with a sore knee or a sore ankle, you know what I’m saying? I’m just finally healthy.”
Although the Rams didn’t make much of it last season, Jenkins suffered a sprained MCL in the team’s Oct. 19 Monday game with Seattle, and it bothered him for much of the season. Teams knew that, and threw at him.
“Once they knew that I was hurt, they were coming at me,” Jenkins said.
He was on the team’s injury report for most of November because of that knee injury and reappeared on the injury report near the end of the year with a back issue.
“Why I was getting beat, I was hurt last year,” Jenkins said. “I don’t care what anybody says. Double moves, I was just trying to make plays.”
So far this season, Jenkins has 23 tackles, two interceptions, and two pass breakups.
Even after allowing two TD passes against Rodgers and Green Bay, the Rams as a team have allowed only five touchdown passes on defense all season, which is tied for the league low. While recognizing that the NFL is very much a week-to-week league, the secondary is finally showing signs of gelling as a unit.
“We’ve been together for a while now,” Jenkins said. “So everybody’s got a feel for each other, how each other plays. Their strengths and weaknesses, so we’ve just got to keep putting it together week in and week out.
“We’re pretty technique-sound. I think Coach D’s doing a good job, fixing our fundamentals and techniques within press.”
(Dennard Wilson is one of the Rams’ defensive backs coaches.)
Jenkins and fellow cornerback Trumaine Johnson are in their fourth season together in the Rams’ secondary, although Johnson has not been a full-time starter during all of that time. At safety, Rodney McLeod and T.J. McDonald are in their third years as starters.
McDonald is the only one of those four starters who is under contract after this season. The others are scheduled for unrestricted free agency.
In the case of Jenkins, the Rams have had ongoing discussions with his agent on a new deal since last spring. Jenkins, in fact, said the Rams made an offer to him last week during the Rams’ bye.
But the numbers apparently weren’t to Jenkins’ liking because he indicated Wednesday that he plans to wait until the end of the season to act on a contract, hinting that he may test the market.
“I’m not talking about the contract,” Jenkins said. “I ended that last week, when they gave me those numbers. It was something I didn’t want to hear. I ended it just like that. I’ll play it out. I’m gonna bet on myself.”
• By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_1b9bdc6a-cc90-5cab-9af4-f50bb8a1165f.html
On Green Bay’s first pass play of the day, quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw deep down the left sideline toward wide receiver Ty Montgomery. Rams cornerback Janoris Jenkins was in tight coverage and the pass fell incomplete.
After that, Rodgers gave Jenkins the “Richard Sherman” treatment during the Rams’ 24-10 loss Oct. 11. Rodgers threw 29 additional passes that day at Lambeau Field; not one of those 29 was thrown in the direction of Jenkins, whose stat line consisted of all zeroes. No tackles, no interceptions, no pass breakups. ...
“It was boring, but at the same time I still had to play football,” Jenkins said. “I couldn’t go to sleep out there because it was A-Rod. In my mind every play I was just thinking he was gonna come over there anyway.”
But Rodgers didn’t. Much was made of the fact that Rodgers didn’t throw at Sherman, the much-heralded Seattle cornerback, a year ago when the Packers and Seahawks met in their 2014 season opener.
Perhaps Rodgers was showing similar respect to Jenkins.
“I see it as a sign of respect,” Jenkins said. “But at the same time, he probably saw something on the other side that he liked better. Probably match-up wise or whatever.”
A week earlier in Arizona, Jenkins was involved in a couple of high-profile plays — one good (an acrobatic interception) and one bad (a pass interference penalty). But otherwise, Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer didn’t throw much in Jenkins’ direction either.
“Most times, what I’ve been noticing the first five weeks, teams are basically trying me with the double move,” Jenkins said. “If they don’t have any success with that, they just go away from me. But like I said, I just stay on top of my game and don’t go to sleep out there.”
The Montgomery route against Jenkins in the Green Bay game was a double move — a stutter-and-go to be precise. But Jenkins didn’t take the bait.
He has, of course, taken the bait in the past and that has led to some feast-or-famine moments for the fourth-year pro.
The feast has come in the form of six defensive touchdowns scored by Jenkins since entering the league in 2012 — more than any other NFL player. One of those TDs came on a recovered fumble; the other five have come on interception returns for TDs, a total that ties the franchise record for career “pick 6s.”
The famine has come when Jenkins has gambled, going for the interception and getting beaten for TDs by receivers fooling him with double moves.
But such plays have been few and far between lately. Jenkins is playing well entering Sunday’s home game with Cleveland, displaying more game-to-game consistency than he has displayed in the past.
Pro Football Focus has him ranked 16th among all NFL cornerbacks in terms of overall grade. Opposing quarterbacks have only a 79.3 passer rating against him according to PFF.
While acknowledging that the gambling and double moves have resulted in some problems in the past, Jenkins feels he’s playing some of the best ball of his career.
“Yeah I do,” he said. “I say that to myself, that I’m finally 100 percent. No nagging injuries. I’m not out there with a sore knee or a sore ankle, you know what I’m saying? I’m just finally healthy.”
Although the Rams didn’t make much of it last season, Jenkins suffered a sprained MCL in the team’s Oct. 19 Monday game with Seattle, and it bothered him for much of the season. Teams knew that, and threw at him.
“Once they knew that I was hurt, they were coming at me,” Jenkins said.
He was on the team’s injury report for most of November because of that knee injury and reappeared on the injury report near the end of the year with a back issue.
“Why I was getting beat, I was hurt last year,” Jenkins said. “I don’t care what anybody says. Double moves, I was just trying to make plays.”
So far this season, Jenkins has 23 tackles, two interceptions, and two pass breakups.
Even after allowing two TD passes against Rodgers and Green Bay, the Rams as a team have allowed only five touchdown passes on defense all season, which is tied for the league low. While recognizing that the NFL is very much a week-to-week league, the secondary is finally showing signs of gelling as a unit.
“We’ve been together for a while now,” Jenkins said. “So everybody’s got a feel for each other, how each other plays. Their strengths and weaknesses, so we’ve just got to keep putting it together week in and week out.
“We’re pretty technique-sound. I think Coach D’s doing a good job, fixing our fundamentals and techniques within press.”
(Dennard Wilson is one of the Rams’ defensive backs coaches.)
Jenkins and fellow cornerback Trumaine Johnson are in their fourth season together in the Rams’ secondary, although Johnson has not been a full-time starter during all of that time. At safety, Rodney McLeod and T.J. McDonald are in their third years as starters.
McDonald is the only one of those four starters who is under contract after this season. The others are scheduled for unrestricted free agency.
In the case of Jenkins, the Rams have had ongoing discussions with his agent on a new deal since last spring. Jenkins, in fact, said the Rams made an offer to him last week during the Rams’ bye.
But the numbers apparently weren’t to Jenkins’ liking because he indicated Wednesday that he plans to wait until the end of the season to act on a contract, hinting that he may test the market.
“I’m not talking about the contract,” Jenkins said. “I ended that last week, when they gave me those numbers. It was something I didn’t want to hear. I ended it just like that. I’ll play it out. I’m gonna bet on myself.”
