The former Green Bay Packer is in the dwindling years of his career and with limited time left, Cullen Jenkins could come back to titletown in search of another Super Bowl.
At 35 years of age, Cullen Jenkins doesn’t have much time left to achieve one more shot at a Super Bowl. But with the Green Bay Packers, that could be another story. The last time Jenkins was in a Packers uniform was 2010–the year Green Bay had their storybook season and won the Super Bowl against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Since then, Jenkins hasn’t been to the playoffs even once.
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The 12 year veteran isn’t a spring chicken anymore and with a some big name defensive linemen on free agency this year teams could be reluctant to flock to Jenkins. Being a seasoned veteran and versatility give Jenkins some leverage in free agency talks. For Jenkins, the money part of his career is past him. If he thinks he is going to get a multi-million dollar deal in the latter of his career, he could be in for a rude awakening. But if Jenkins is in for one last ride, money or not, a return to titletown could potentially happen.
In an interview with Tom Rock of Newsday.com, Jenkins was asked about the future of his career. He responded with “I feel like I still have more to give, to play more. I made it out of the season in good health, so that’s a blessing. I’ll take a little time off, rest the body a little bit, and then go from there.”
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In other words, it doesn’t sound like Jenkins is ready to hang up the cleats just yet.
Jenkins played seven seasons with the Packers between 2004 and 2010. In that time he played in 93 of 112 possible regular season games, recorded 194 tackles, 29 sacks, 16 passes defended and five forced fumbles. In five seasons with two other teams, Jenkins logged 139 tackles, 18.5 sacks, and three forced fumbles.
Jenkins played in all 16 games last season with the New York Giants–starting 14 of them and put up stats close to his career averages. While never putting up eye-popping numbers in his career, Jenkins is still a valuable asset in the pass rush department and his 6-foot-3, 300 pound frame is one offensive lines have a hard time confronting.
If Jenkins was once again on the Packers defensive line, he could play a nice rotational role behind Letroy Guion or Mike Daniels. Mike Pennel will most likely taking over starting duties at nose tackle, leaving a space open for Jenkins behind Daniels on the roster.
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While Jenkins was on the Packers defense he played on the right side in Mike Daniel’s position–but with the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants, Jenkins played on the left side. Jenkins is a versatile player and could probably even play nose tackle in certain situations.
It’s still uncertain what New York’s plans are with Jenkins but if he hits the market, the Packers should take a look at signing the former Super Bowl winner to their roster.