Green Bay Packers: Drafting Elgton Jenkins was the smart pick

With the 44th pick, the Green Bay Packers selected interior offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins and it was the smart decision.

As the Green Bay Packers found themselves on the clock, they had a variety of players that were worthy of being drafted. Tight end Irv Smith Jr. was still on the board as were receivers Hakeem Butler, A.J. Brown and D.K. Metcalf amongst others. Even top safeties Chauncy Gardner-Johnson and Nasir Adderley would have made some sense for Green Bay at this pick.

However, Green Bay went with the unsexy pick and selected interior offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins to help give this team depth along the line and possibly start in 2019.

On paper, the Green Bay Packers offensive line appears to be set but there are question marks. Last year the unit gave up 3.3 sacks per game, which ranked as the second most in the NFL. Bryan Bulaga is solid when on the field but can’t be relied upon to play in all 16 games. Lane Taylor struggled in 2018, allowing eight sacks and while we hope he bounces back, we don’t know that he will for sure. Even newly signed Billy Turner has just 25 starts in five seasons.

Regardless of all the changes that have taken place in Green Bay amongst the coaching staff and the roster, this team still goes as far as Aaron Rodgers takes them. And for the remainder of his time in Green Bay, they must keep him upright.

Enter Elgton Jenkins who is the exact type of offensive lineman that General Manager Brian Gutekunst has wanted to add to this team. During his time at Mississippi State, Jenkins displayed his versatility by playing center, guard, as well as tackle and is a very athletic player, scoring a 9.34 on the Relative Athletic Scoring table. One of the best amongst interior offensive linemen.

For the Green Bay Packers, Jenkins will likely play guard and will compete with Lane Taylor for his starting job. Jenkins is an ideal fit for new head coach Matt LaFleur’s zone running scheme. He moves well in space and is able to control his opponent at the point of contact, steering them away from the runner. There is a real possibility that this new scheme could present an issue for Taylor and prior to this selection, Green Bay doesn’t really have any reliable options behind the starting five.

As a pass protector, Jenkins sets a big wide base that allows him to anchor against bull rushers and good hand placement allows him to hold those blocks. On the tape, rarely did I see Jenkins blow a blocking assignment and much of that can be attributed to his technique.

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What Jenkins can also provide is a backup to center Corey Linsley. While he played just about everywhere on the offensive front during his time at Mississippi State, he found a home at center during his final two seasons. Linsley is about as reliable as they come, playing in 100 percent of offensive snaps last season and has become one of the better centers in the league. Having a dependable backup for that just in case moment is a necessity.

I understand that this wasn’t an exciting pick with all of those receiver options on the board and it was a player that many may not be familiar with, but the name of the game in the NFL is getting to the quarterback and protecting the quarterback. After addressing the former in round one, Green Bay took care of the latter in round two.

Given what we saw last season, this was a smart pick and one that needed to be done early on a prospect that can make an immediate impact.