Jets' Jenkins ready to rumble
Nose tackle means trouble for the Bills
Buffalo Bills center Geoff Hangartner was a teammate of New York Jets nose tackle Kris Jenkins when they were with the Carolina Panthers.
Hangartner had the opportunity to go against Jenkins many times in practice, so he knows exactly what he'll be up against when their current teams meet in the Meadowlands on Sunday.
"The guy is an amazing athlete," Hangartner said. "He's one of the best I've ever seen. He's unbelievable. He's great physically, he plays hard and he's quick. We definitely have our hands full this week."
The Bills have already experienced the havoc Jenkins can wreak. During the Jets' 26-17 win over the Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium last Nov. 2, Jenkins was a one-man wrecking crew. He was credited with just three tackles, including two solo, but that doesn't tell you how dominant he was.
He was virtually unblockable as he spent most of the afternoon in the Bills' backfield. He finished with 1.5 sacks, three quarterback hurries and almost single-handedly short-circuited the Buffalo running game, which was held to 30 yards on 17 carries.
Jenkins is a 6-foot-4, 360-pound immovable object in the middle of the Jets' defense, which is ranked ninth in the NFL. It is almost impossible to block him one-on-one consistently because of his overpowering strength.
The nine-year veteran is a disruptive force who not only clogs running lanes but can blow up plays in the backfield with his surprising quickness and ability to anticipate the snap.
"He's really a football savvy guy," Hangartner said. "He's played a lot of football, he's smart and he will take chances and try to jump the snap count. If he's right, it's an uphill battle for sure."
Jenkins, who hadn't played nose tackle before joining the Jets last season, is the kind of player who has offensive coordinators afraid to go to sleep for fear of awakening to the nightmarish reality of having to figure out a game plan to neutralize the Jets' mean green giant.
This week it's Alex Van Pelt's turn to try to come up with a way to keep Jenkins in check.
"He's a tremendous athlete, much like last week with [Cleveland's] Shaun Rogers," Van Pelt said. "He's great in the run game and has pass rush ability. He's another one of those great 3-4 nose guys we face this year."
The Bills are going through a gauntlet of nose tackles from Jenkins and Rogers to New England's Vince Wilfork.
After doing a decent job on Wilfork and Rogers, Van Pelt believes the Bills' interior offensive line is ready for the challenge Jenkins presents.
"I think we feel better about our group inside and our ability," Van Pelt said. "We have to be smart, too, and not think that Geoff can block any of those guys one-on-one [all the time]. That's asking a lot. We'll try to give those guys up front as much help as we can."
Of course double teams don't always work against Jenkins, who has only 12 tackles (nine solo) and no sacks so far, but his value is in his ability to occupy multiple offensive linemen and keep them off the Jets' linebackers so they can run unimpeded to the football.
"He's a special player," Jets head coach Rex Ryan said. "It's amazing for a guy to be that size and play with that kind of passion, that kind of strength, that kind of power and really be able to move the way he does. This guy is not just running a six-[second]-flat in the 40[-yard dash]. He can break five-flat in the 40. He's got unusual movement skills for somebody that big. He's such a talent and he's a force in the middle."
And a royal pain for people who have to block him. Just ask Hangartner, who believes his familiarity with Jenkins will only help him so much on Sunday.
"You might be able to get him going laterally, but he's so strong he'll just toss you out of the way," Hangartner said. "He's got an answer for everything you try to do to him. You've got to try and mix it up on him and keep him guessing. There are no magic techniques against that guy."
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