Film room: John Jenkins makes an impact in Indianapolis despite questionable grade

Defensive tackle John Jenkins was a star for the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 17 against the Indianapolis Colts.

Jenkins finished the game with seven total tackles, which is rather impressive for an interior defensive lineman. And these weren’t just stat-boosting takedowns from several yards out, as Pro Football Focus credited him with four defensive stops—tackles that resulted in a “failure” for the offense. That statistic is tied for the most for the week at his position, and he had a 1.6-yard average depth of tackle.

PFF, on the other hand, awarded the experienced run-stuffer a below-average 53.2 rating versus the run, which is clearly perplexing. So, is this a case where his output is deceptive, or is the mark simply too low?

Let’s have a look at the footage and see for ourselves.

Jenkins is in charge of the weakside A-gap against this mid-zone run, but he is reached on the scoop block by the center, Ryan Kelly, who gets to Jenkins’ outside shoulder. This opens up a rushing lane, but Nate Hobbs reads it and crashes downhill before the wide receiver can block him, causing the running back to cut inside.

Jenkins is fortunate because Hobbs forces the cutback, but this would be a terrible play for Jenkins since he would be wheeled out of his gap.

This is the same mid-zone play call, but from a little different formation. This time, Jenkins is prepared, and once he sees the blocking strategy, he tackles the center and uses his muscle to reset the line of scrimmage. He efficiently closes the gap with the center and then goes off the block to make the defensive stop right at the line of scrimmage.

The Colts run power, which forces the left guard, Quenton Nelson, to block Jenkins, who is set up at nose. Jenkins shifts his eyes and hands again to take on the block and obtain some extension from Nelson.

Finally, the defense tackle escapes, and because Robert Spillane beats the tight end, the rushing channel collapses, allowing Jenkins to make another tackle directly at the line of scrimmage. That is excellent team defense.

The Colts run power, forcing Quenton Nelson, the left guard, to block Jenkins, who is set up at nose. Jenkins shifts his gaze and hands once more in order to take on the block and gain some extension from Nelson.

Finally, the defense tackle escapes, and the rushing channel collapses as Robert Spillane beats the tight end, allowing Jenkins to make another tackle immediately at the line of scrimmage. That is great team defense.

This rep is similar to the negative footage we saw previously, but it has the same issue as Jenkins takes on a combo block and allows the center to get to his outside shoulder. Furthermore, he is displaced around three or four yards, which is simply too much distance to give up, especially for a player who is in the game for his run defense.

In Indianapolis, an outside toss with a pin-and-pull concept is used. That means Nelson will be responsible for getting to Jenkins, and the defensive tackle should have an edge with his pre-snap alignment because he is outside the guard’s shade.