Cincinnati Bengals Film Room: Kris Jenkins AKA The Mutant

We all knew the Cincinnati Bengals needed to add a defensive tackle early on. In the second round, they turned to a familiar school up north, selecting Kris Jenkins. The NFL legacy and national champion brings many intangibles the Bengals seek, and his film speaks for itself.

Look at.

Jenkins has the number 94 in blue on the right side of the screen.

Jenkins lines up in the B space, but with his first step, he lags in the A space. This confuses the offensive line, and the tackle and guard end up blocking him at first.

However, they move little or not at all, and he maintains his gap. He keeps his space open and when the runner makes his cut, Jenkins is able to move away from the block and make the tackle.

Jenkins earned the nickname “the mutant” in the weight room, and his playing strength lives up to that nickname.

Jenkins is #94 in white, left of center of the screen,

From two blockers and a gap to one blocker and two gaps. In this clip, Jenkins lines up in a heavy 3-technique in the B-gap but almost goes to guard. He hits the guard and spins his inside shoulder. This allows Jenkins to appear in the A-gap. The ball carrier sees it and bounces toward the B-Gap, but Jenkins has no trouble getting back into the B-gap to make the tackle.

Much has been made of the fact that the Bengals wouldn’t be able to play a 2-gap system on the defensive line without DJ Reader, but Jenkins has demonstrated the ability to do so.

Jenkins is No. 94, the second player from the bottom in white at the line of scrimmage.

In another display of raw power, Jenkins drops back and overthrows the offensive tackle on this play. He then quickly disengages to get involved in the tackle at the line of scrimmage.

Jenkins is #94, the second player from the bottom in blue at the line of scrimmage.

Although the run gets away from Jenkins on this play, he bends so hard that the fullback tight end can’t block. Jenkins brings the runner down from behind, making the tackle for no gain.

Jenkins is #94, second play in blue from the right.

This is a big play on Jenkins’ end. He beats the block down and runs straight to the line of scrimmage to make the tackle.

These last two games show that Jenkins has the engine to play in a Lou Anarumo defense,

Kris Jenkins is a great fit for the Bengals defense. He is an excellent interior defender who is a force against the run and has the athleticism to thrive as an interior passer. Expect Jenkins to play a role in 2024 and be an important part of Bengal’s defense moving forward.