Top 25 Saints of 2020: No. 11, Malcolm Jenkins
We're just about five Sundays away from the big dance that is the 2020 NFL season kicking off. Training camps are right around the corner, but will look completely different than anything before. The New Orleans Saints are one of the league's biggest contenders this season, and they have one of the best rosters to make a deep postseason run. However, they have plenty of things to figure out and achieve before they get to that point, and we continue to look at our top players who will have a big hand in the team's successes or failures.
Here's a rundown of the countdown up until this point.
The Countdown
- No. 25, Latavius Murray
- No. 24, Taysom Hill
- No. 23, C.J. Gardner-Johnson
- No. 22, Malcom Brown
- No. 21, Marcus Williams
- No. 20, Deonte Harris
- No. 19, Andrus Peat
- No. 18, Cesar Ruiz
- No. 17, Janoris Jenkins
- No. 16, Thomas Morstead
- No. 15, Wil Lutz
- No. 14, Marcus Davenport
- No. 13, Erik McCoy
- No. 12, David Onyemata
Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
No. 11 - Malcolm Jenkins
The Philadelphia Eagles will certainly miss No. 27 this season, but that's a choice they made when they elected to decline Malcolm Jenkins' contract option in March. Jenkins, who was a captain of the team, was praised for his leadership during his time with Philly, and a huge reason why they won their first Super Bowl in the 2017 season.
In 2019, Jenkins appeared in 1,075 snaps for their defense, grading out 39th overall out of 82 safeties with a 69.2 on Pro Football Focus. It was certainly a decline from his 2018 season, but up until last season, Jenkins graded out consistently at 74.5 or better from 2014-2018. Jenkins racked up 81 total tackles (62 solo, 18 assisted) in 16 games, finishing with 2.5 sacks, 4 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, and 12 passes defended.
Jenkins' Outlook in 2020
Malcolm Jenkins' second stint with the Saints should bring strong leadership and improved coverage for the secondary. Vonn Bell was good in his time in New Orleans, but was a better run coverage option. That shouldn't miss a beat by moving C.J. Gardner-Johnson to the slot. Jenkins, who signed a four-year, $32 million deal with the team in March, will turn 33 in December. He has increased his skill set since leaving the Saints, being able to put on many hats to confuse offenses.
New Orleans has a very underrated secondary that they're bringing to the table in 2020, but it has the potential to be great. Marshon Lattimore and Janoris Jenkins are a great one-two punch at corner, while Marcus Williams and Malcolm Jenkins should be a strong safety tandem. The biggest thing here will be the communication, but Dennis Allen and Aaron Glenn should be able to work out any kinks we may see early on to help the Saints be even better than the previous seasons.
