The secondary could be the strength of the New Orleans Saints defense this year, and veteran safety Malcolm Jenkins has a good idea why that might be the case. He sees it every day in practice as cornerbacks Marshon Lattimore and Janoris Jenkins make his job easier.
“For me, and without beating anyone I’ve played with, I don’t think I’ve played with a tandem who are both as talented as Marshon and Janoris,” Jenkins said. in his media conference after training on Thursday’s training camp.
That’s high praise from a player entering his twelfth season in the NFL, who won a few Super Bowl rings with the Saints and the Philadelphia Eagles. But he persists, continuing: ‘Janoris, a veteran who can walk with anyone, can change direction and cover anyone who is currently fully motivated, just to show him against our recipients in the practice has been impressive. And Marshon may be the best cornerback in this league. It’s just about consistency and bringing that out of him. ”
“Jackrabbit” dealt with the same responsibilities in coverage as Lattimore last season, and opposed opposing no. 1 receivers while playing with the New York Giants. But with Lattimore running at the other end of the lineup, Jenkins runs more often against the second- and third-ranked receivers on the depth map. And he is striking in that role.
It also helps ease the pressure of Lattimore. If the boy (Lattimore is back in May 24) is having trouble in his matchup with, say, Michael Thomas, then the Saints can swap him with Jenkins to see if his greater experience can help find an edge. But being able to push one of them backwards is a big impetus for the safeties.
Jenkins has re-signed with the Saints after six years in Philadelphia, and New Orleans has become creative in its use with him. He ran every cover under the sun with the Eagles and brings great communication skills to the back end, which should help eliminate errors. With him and extensive free safety patrolling Marcus Williams’ deeper stretches of the field, Lattimore and Jenkins can push a little more physically with their opponents, knowing they are covered when they make a mistake.
On paper, that’s a winning combination. We’ll see if it goes through its first Test in a few weeks as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers visit, with Tom Brady throwing early and often to widows Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.
Malcolm Jenkins on the DB duo of @ shonrp2 en @JjenkzLockdown 🙌#SaintsCamp pic.twitter.com/UbLWeFdzXO
– New Orleans Saints (@Saints) August 20, 2020
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