Anything can happen with Rex Ryan's scheme.
At 6’4" and 360 pounds, the Jets’ defensive tackle is massive, strong and amazingly agile. You can add adaptable to his description as well because the Texans will be surprised when they turn on the video and see there was a preseason snap when big No. 77 lined up at middle linebacker.
"It’s like a happy, scary thing at the same time," Big Jenks said of his LB position. "It’s like ‘What am I doing standing up?’ "
There was an interesting reaction from Jenkins when the Jets' creative defensive staff informed him that there was a package in which he would drop back off the line of scrimmage.
"Oh my gosh, OMG," he said with a laugh. "I went home and told my wife, ‘I played linebacker today.’ She was like, ‘What?’ I said, ‘I played linebacker.’ She’s been learning about football and she’s starting to learn about the positions some and she was like, ‘Isn’t that the position [David] Harris and [Bart] Scott play?’ I was like, ‘Yeah.’ She said, ‘What are you doing there? You’re bigger. Aren’t you supposed to be on the line?’ "
After eight professional seasons, the move to linebacker was a first for Jenkins. The goal of this Jets defense is organized chaos and you just wonder what will be going through Texans QB Matt Schaub’s mind when he’s in the film room next week and sees No. 77 off the line.
This is why I love Ryan's system. There's so much outside the box thinking. When guys line up in exotic spots, blockers get confused. If they aren't used to it, they can't be comfortable with their assignments. I mean how do you approach from an offensive perspective the threat of Jenkins at middle linebacker? There's no book on how to play against a nose tackle in that position.