Sophia
GREEN BAY, Wis. – Green Bay Packers Pro Bowl center Elgton Jenkins isn’t mincing words about his performance last week against the Cleveland Browns. In a remarkably candid self-assessment, Jenkins declared his play was, to put it mildly, subpar. Now, as the Packers prepare for a crucial matchup against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, Jenkins is determined to turn the page and deliver the dominant performance fans have come to expect.
A Frank Self-Assessment from the Pro Bowler
“I feel like I’ve played like sh**, honestly,” Jenkins, a three-time Pro Bowler in his inaugural season as the team’s starting center, stated emphatically this week. “I can play a lot better. A lot of things, a lot of small detail things that I can fix overall. But I just feel like I’ve played like sh** and definitely got to play better moving forward.”
Jenkins’ move to center was a key component of the offensive line overhaul following last year’s disappointing playoff exit against the Philadelphia Eagles. After promising starts against the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders, the entire offensive line, including Jenkins, struggled significantly against the Browns’ formidable defensive front.
LaFleur Applauds Jenkins’ Accountability
Packers Head Coach Matt LaFleur praised Jenkins’ mature response, emphasizing the importance of self-criticism for improvement. “I personally think that’s a mature response,” LaFleur said. “I think we all need to be self-critical if we want to get better. He has a high standard for himself, which is exactly what you want. He’s one of our better players, so in order to win games in this league, you need your best players to play at their best. It wasn’t just him. It was all of us, myself included, so we’ve all got to be better.”
Navigating a New Role: Experience vs. Learning Curve
While Jenkins played center at Mississippi State and logged nearly 300 snaps at the position for the Packers in 2020, his current full-time role presents a new challenge. Pro Football Focus attributed two sacks to Jenkins during the upset loss to the Browns, highlighting the adjustments still being made.
“I don’t feel like I played at the level I can play at, let me say that,” Jenkins clarified. “It’s more so the small things that are learning mistakes or mistakes that I wish I would have learned from in camp. I’d rather have it happen now. Especially the game that we had as a unit, I’d rather for it to happen now and we can look ourselves in the mirror and be like, ‘This is not the standard, this is not how we play football,’ and make sure that don’t happen no more throughout the year. But, it’s the truth, and it happened, and all we can do is learn from it and get better moving forward.”
Stenavich’s Perspective: A Bad Game, Not a Bad Player
Offensive Coordinator Adam Stenavich, who has worked with Jenkins since his drafting in 2019, largely agreed with the assessment of Jenkins’ recent play but maintained perspective. “I think he’s being critical of himself,” Stenavich observed. “He’s taking ownership and all that stuff. I would say he had a bad game. He didn’t play great for his standards against the Browns. But it’s Game 3 of a 17-game season plus, hopefully, we earn the right to make the playoffs. It is what it is. If he can take that negative and make it a positive for the rest of the season, then let’s go and do that. I’m not going to get too high or too low on any of this stuff. I just want to see how they go out there on Sunday and play.”
A Familiar Foe: Battling Kenny Clark
Sunday night’s showdown with the Dallas Cowboys presents a unique challenge for Jenkins: a reunion with former Packers teammate, defensive tackle Kenny Clark. Clark, now wearing No. 95 for Dallas after being traded as part of the Micah Parsons deal, spent countless practice reps battling Jenkins. This familiarity promises an intriguing chess match in the trenches.
“Honestly, this whole camp, we had so many conversations on the things that I see that he could get better at and things that I could get better at that he told me,” Jenkins shared. “It’s going to be interesting, honestly.”
Clark, arguably the Cowboys’ most impactful defensive lineman, echoed the sentiment. “E for sure the best lineman,” Clark said during a conference call. “Me and him been just battling for years. E been great since his rookie year. To really go against him and be live, we had a lot of competition stuff early during camp. The coaches love to see us matched up against each other, and we really battled this year during camp. It was definitely a good battle and I’m just excited to play against him. Like he said, we both know each other. We both know what everybody likes to do and I know how he plays and what he like to do so, yeah, it’s going to be interesting just playing against him and that chess matchup. But, at the end of the day, it’s football. You got to play fast, you got to be violent, you got to play with your hands and just play relentless. Definitely, it’s going to be some stuff that he know that I like to do and it’s going to be interesting to see how he’s going to try to combat it.”
Looking Ahead: A Chance for Redemption
As the Packers head to Dallas, all eyes will be on Elgton Jenkins. His raw honesty about his recent performance, combined with the anticipation of his battle against Kenny Clark, sets the stage for a compelling individual narrative within a critical team game. Jenkins’ commitment to improvement and his willingness to confront his struggles head-on underscore the leadership qualities that make him a cornerstone of the Green Bay offensive line. Sunday night offers a prime opportunity for Jenkins to “wipe the slate clean” and reassert himself as one of the league’s premier offensive linemen.
