A little bit before this time in 2008, I was salivating over the prospects of landing Ohio State cornerback Malcolm Jenkins at number seven. Unfortunately for Patriots fans (or so it seemed pre-Mayo), Jenkins opted to remain at Ohio State for his senior year.
At the time, it seemed like the Patriots, who were destined for a later pick in 2009, would have to close the door on acquiring Jenkins.
Jenkins went on to play his season at a very high level. He recorded 57 tackles as well as another three interceptions. At 6, and a little over 200 pounds, Jenkins plays very physically at the line, using contact very effectively. But he is just as effective in the open field. Jenkins can stay stride for stride with the fastest receivers in the league. He is also a good tackler, is effective on the blitz, as well as in zone coverage (he can accelerate quick enough to stay off the line). Jenkins shows no real weaknesses in his game, although he will mainly have to adjust to getting picked on in the NFL (he rarely had balls thrown his way in college).
Jenkins would fit in perfectly with the Patriots, and would quite possibly, alone, solve most of the Patriots issues on the defensive side on the ball (depending on how you look at it).
However, the question youre probably asking is, How in the world could Malcolm Jenkins fall to 23? Well, Ill answer that, he simply wont. However, due to a lack of need of cornerback in the top 10, Jenkins is looking like he could slip to that 10-15 range. If he is sitting around 12 or 13, I believe that Belichick could very well trade up to get him, possibly giving away one of our two second round picks as well as a late round pick.
And from everything Ive seen and heard about Malcolm Jenkins, Im pretty sure hell be worth those extra picks.
