Size: 5-foot-10, 197 pounds
Combine 40-yard dash time: 4.38
POSITIVES
Jenkins has, from an athletic standpoint, just about everything you'd ever want in a corner. He's strong to the point where, despite doing 18 reps on the bench at the combine, a very good number for a corner, his coaches insist he can put it up in the mid-20s on a good day. He consistently has run in the 4.3s, and excels in man coverage. Has little problem keeping with receivers downfield, and has good instincts. Plus, he's explosive. Can change direction suddenly, and breaks on the ball quickly. He's fluid, and can flip and drop his hips without a hitch. Outstanding recovery speed, which allows him to take some chances. His potential is really unlimited, and he hasn't come close to fully tapping it yet. When he was challenged in 2007, against receivers like West Virginia's Darius Reynaud, he shone brightest. So the theory would go there that he will be challenged moreso as a pro, which could serve as a motivator.
SOUTH FLORIDA DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR WALLY BURNHAM
He was like most kids, when he first got here, he was a raw talent, and didn't know how to work real hard. He went through growing pains, and redshirted that first year. He has grown, and learned how to work. He has loads of talent. ... He's got closing speed - let me tell you, he can close on the ball. And he can run as fast as you'd ever want him to. He ran a 4.3 at the combine, and he can play as fast as anyone out there. He's so explosive, he's got good ball skills, he's got all the qualities. He can play press man, off man, zone, the deep third, all the things you'd ask of a corner. And he's a good tackler. ...He was better than most people, and that was his problem at time. It was that way against anyone against in high school, and he got to this level and was better than anyone he practiced against. His whole career, he's been able to shut down anyone he covered. Going to the next level, he'll go through the same growing process he did here, and I think peer pressure will get him there. No one was better than him here. There, people are going to be better and he's going to be challenged, which will him. He's very coachable. That level he's going to now, the responsibility that other players put on him will make him better. ...Auburn, Nebraska, South Carolina and LSU offered him. I don't think the big in-state schools did. But he was one of the first big guys, one of the first big in-state recruits we got. He was a big recruit for us. Mike's a very quiet kid, and playing close to home meant a lot to him at time. He was immature and he didn't want to get away. He felt more comfortable here. With his personality, he didn't want to venture. ... When he was young, we played against UAB and put him on (now-Falcon) Roddy White and Mike shut him down completely. That comes right to my mind. This year, Cincinnati had a real, real good receiver, he caught a lot of balls, and Mike shut him down. We'd say, 'Mike go over there, and have a good game against whoever it is' and he would. The Renaud kid at West Virginia, Mike handled him with ease. ... He was our field corner, we played a lot of quarters over there and we gave him a lot of responsibility. If they had trips to his side, we'd let him play in-between the '1' and '2' receivers and cheat the safeties. We gave him a lot of responsibility. ... There's no doubt he gave us flexibility, he and the other corner, Trae Williams. We'd load box up and play a lot of man-free. He could match up with anybody, and that gave us tremendous flexibility. ... One thing he needs to do is work harder, learn that every play has an impact, whether it's in practice or a game. He's gotta learn that - 'This play is very, very important, don't take a play off.' He could also work on his ball skills a bit. He has good hands, not great hands. ... He's got enough talent, where the receiver and quarterback thinks he's doing something, and he knows exactly what they're doing, and he can bait them a little bit. ...He's a great kid. That deal (with the arrest), he was at a bachelor party, it was Steven Nicholas', who plays for the Falcons, and I don't know the exact circumstances. There was some pushing and shoving and the police came. It got out of hand. He was wrong, but he knew he was wrong. But outside of that, this was the kind of kid that always where he was supposed to be, always in class, always with his tutors. That was the only issue we ever had with him. ... He and I had a long talk the other day, what I told him was 'Mike, you have to be more verbal.' One of the scouts came through here about a month ago, got him on the board, and Mike wasn't talkative. He's got to be more communicative, he's got to come out of that shell. He's got to express himself more. That will carry him a long way. He's so quiet, that people think he's not listening. He's got to do those kind of things. The other thing, he's got to believe in himself and say 'Hey, I'm gonna make this team, and do a great job for them.' He has the ability to be an outstanding player at that level. And you don't need to worry about his character whatsoever.
COWBOYS SECONDARY COACH DAVE CAMPO
He's a very skilled athlete. He's got outstanding acceleration, he's got all the skills you're looking for. He's just got to learn to bring everything together, with some technique work. ... (Footwork) is something we work hard at, and we're going to work technique no matter who it is, whether it's a first-round pick or a guy that's been playing in the league 10 years. ... He's a playmaker, he's got instincts and he's got a way of getting to the football. He had a lot of passes defensed, he can catch the ball, he may have struggled a little bit today, but he can catch the football. And those are things that stick out. ... We're looking at him outside, but I think he could move inside, he's got that kind of ability. He's quick, and he's a smooth athlete. ... He's gotta learn the practice tempo we go by, and all the things that change from college to the pros. But he'll do that. ... Mike is an excellent athlete, and we're going to put him right in there and start coaching him. Where he finishes, time will tell, but I think he's capable of playing either corner. He's gotta fine tune some stuff, and we'll see what happens.
