Bears analyst believes this lineman will be the breakout player of the year for Chicago
A breakout player is a player that surprises everyone and that has a huge improvement from the previous season. If you ask scouts, coaches and experts when the majority of players make the biggest jump as professionals, they will often answer that it's the second year in the league.
The cumulative effect of a full year of NFL training and a commitment to maximizing their talents and reaching their full potential certainly helps some players go from an inconsistent rookie year to a great player in Year 2.
Well, here is who Jacob infante listed as the potential player he believes will fit the category.
Let me tell you something, this was a great prediction. Jenkins' rookie season was cut short due to injuries but he showed some very good things. I believe he has the potential to become a multi-year starter at either offensive tackle spot.
Jenkins is only 24. It's hard to call his rookie season a failure because he was injured for 11 out of the 17 games. However, I agree that it was very disappointing to see.
But, let's not forget that Jenkins was very highly graded coming out of college just last year. He was selected with the 39th overall pick in the 2021 draft and many experts called this pick a "steal" at the time. In fact, ESPN, PFF and NFL Network all had Jenkins ranked as a top-4 offensive tackle in his class. While this does not help us at the moment, it just shows what kind of talent he possesses.
In fact, per PFF, Teven Jenkins only allowed two pressures and zero sacks, in the last four games of 2021! This is very impressive stuff and he faced a lot of solid pass rushers versus the Vikings and the Giants.
In conclusion, Jenkins is still a very raw player who needs to develop in big ways but I believe he still has a great shot at being the left tackle of the future in Chicago!
