Post by prossman on Dec 4, 2009 8:17:48 GMT -7
StrTgram:Mike Jenkins, Dallas Cowboys’ defense to tackle challenge head-on
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LINK
By CLARENCE E. HILL JR.
chill@star-telegram.com
IRVING — Jay-Z will just have to forgive Dallas Cowboys cornerback Mike Jenkins for not rockin’ his Empire State of Mind song this week when the Cowboys travel to the New York area for Sunday’s showdown against the Giants.
But there is a more appropriate song in the rap giant’s repertoire that is more fitting for the occasion.
It’s really not so much the song, but the lyrics that fit Jenkins’ mind-set.
Known more for shying away from a tackle in his first trip to the Big Apple last year as a rookie rather than the physical shutdown cornerback he has become, Jenkins would like to "re-introduce himself" to the big lights of the concrete jungle.
And like Jay-Z, he’s feeling brand new.
Spurred on during the off-season by the perception that he was soft and shied away from contact, Jenkins has taken his vengeance out on the rest of the league in 2009 with bone-jarring hits, a team-leading three interceptions and 12 pass deflections.
Instead of avoiding contact, opponents have started avoiding throwing the ball in his direction.
"It was very personal," Jenkins said. "I knew what kind of player I was and I’m just trying to get that out to everybody."
If truth be told, the same can be said about the Cowboys’ pass defense heading into the second matchup of the season against the Giants.
This is not the same unit that was obliterated for 427 yards, including 330 via the pass as receivers Steve Smith and Mario Manningham combined for 20 catches for 284 yards and two touchdowns in a 33-31 Giants victory.
Since then, the Cowboys’ defense has played as well as any in the league, holding the past nine opponents to no more than 21 points. Its 128 points allowed during that span tops the league.
The Cowboys have given up an average of 303 yards per game since, including just 207.4 through the air. More pointedly, the Cowboys haven’t allowed a 100-yard receiver since the Giants had their two.
Coach Wade Phillips said it was simply a matter of the Cowboys jelling on defense with five new starters, including Jenkins, linebackers Keith Brooking and Anthony Spencer, end Igor Olshansky and safety Gerald Sensabaugh.
"We’ve just been more consistent, went back to basics," Phillips said. "Just melding the defense together. No excuses, but we did have new guys. Those guys playing together, it’s a little bit different. … [We] found a niche to what we can play defensively and what we can’t play, what our strengths and weaknesses are."
What the Cowboys also found out was that the defense is best with Jenkins in the lineup. Nobody embodies the change in the defense since the Giants game better than Jenkins.
He began the season alternating starts with Orlando Scandrick. Jenkins started the opener, and Scandrick started the Game 2 matchup against the Giants.
While the Giants got the best of everybody in the Cowboys’ secondary, nobody had a rougher outing than Scandrick. Phillips named Jenkins the permanent starter the following week and the rest, as they say, is history.
"Mike Jenkins is hard to throw against," Phillips said. "He jams them up well. Our pass defense has been good because we’ve been able to count on him."
Jenkins downplays his outstanding play. He says the back and forth was hard for him and Scandrick. He said everything improved and got comfortable once they had defined roles. He believes that will make a huge difference this time around against the Giants.
"As a corps, they ate us up, even when I got in there," Jenkins said. "I didn’t start that game, but when I got in there, I got hit on a stop-and-go. It’s definitely been a battle between those receivers and us. Right now, we’re trying to go in there and get the best of them.
"Everybody has their own responsibilities and their own assignments they can focus on during the week, not me and Orlando focused on messing up and losing a job. Everybody is comfortable right now. We’re going to go out there and handle business."
For Jenkins, it’s still personal. He will never forget the criticism he received for avoiding the tackle on a touchdown run by then- Giants running back Derrick Ward. Even though he has established himself as a physical cornerback who makes big hits rather than shying away from contact, Jenkins acknowledges that he thinks about that play every week.
Now he gets a chance to re-introduce himself in the big lights place where Jay-Z said the streets make you feel brand new.
"At first, it was a hassle, but as I worked out and went through the off-season, it definitely became a motivation," Jenkins said. "Every week, I try to make big hits. Sometimes I knock myself out trying to overdo it. But it’s definitely a motivator."
Clarence E. Hill Jr., 817-390-7760
__________________
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LINK
By CLARENCE E. HILL JR.
chill@star-telegram.com
IRVING — Jay-Z will just have to forgive Dallas Cowboys cornerback Mike Jenkins for not rockin’ his Empire State of Mind song this week when the Cowboys travel to the New York area for Sunday’s showdown against the Giants.
But there is a more appropriate song in the rap giant’s repertoire that is more fitting for the occasion.
It’s really not so much the song, but the lyrics that fit Jenkins’ mind-set.
Known more for shying away from a tackle in his first trip to the Big Apple last year as a rookie rather than the physical shutdown cornerback he has become, Jenkins would like to "re-introduce himself" to the big lights of the concrete jungle.
And like Jay-Z, he’s feeling brand new.
Spurred on during the off-season by the perception that he was soft and shied away from contact, Jenkins has taken his vengeance out on the rest of the league in 2009 with bone-jarring hits, a team-leading three interceptions and 12 pass deflections.
Instead of avoiding contact, opponents have started avoiding throwing the ball in his direction.
"It was very personal," Jenkins said. "I knew what kind of player I was and I’m just trying to get that out to everybody."
If truth be told, the same can be said about the Cowboys’ pass defense heading into the second matchup of the season against the Giants.
This is not the same unit that was obliterated for 427 yards, including 330 via the pass as receivers Steve Smith and Mario Manningham combined for 20 catches for 284 yards and two touchdowns in a 33-31 Giants victory.
Since then, the Cowboys’ defense has played as well as any in the league, holding the past nine opponents to no more than 21 points. Its 128 points allowed during that span tops the league.
The Cowboys have given up an average of 303 yards per game since, including just 207.4 through the air. More pointedly, the Cowboys haven’t allowed a 100-yard receiver since the Giants had their two.
Coach Wade Phillips said it was simply a matter of the Cowboys jelling on defense with five new starters, including Jenkins, linebackers Keith Brooking and Anthony Spencer, end Igor Olshansky and safety Gerald Sensabaugh.
"We’ve just been more consistent, went back to basics," Phillips said. "Just melding the defense together. No excuses, but we did have new guys. Those guys playing together, it’s a little bit different. … [We] found a niche to what we can play defensively and what we can’t play, what our strengths and weaknesses are."
What the Cowboys also found out was that the defense is best with Jenkins in the lineup. Nobody embodies the change in the defense since the Giants game better than Jenkins.
He began the season alternating starts with Orlando Scandrick. Jenkins started the opener, and Scandrick started the Game 2 matchup against the Giants.
While the Giants got the best of everybody in the Cowboys’ secondary, nobody had a rougher outing than Scandrick. Phillips named Jenkins the permanent starter the following week and the rest, as they say, is history.
"Mike Jenkins is hard to throw against," Phillips said. "He jams them up well. Our pass defense has been good because we’ve been able to count on him."
Jenkins downplays his outstanding play. He says the back and forth was hard for him and Scandrick. He said everything improved and got comfortable once they had defined roles. He believes that will make a huge difference this time around against the Giants.
"As a corps, they ate us up, even when I got in there," Jenkins said. "I didn’t start that game, but when I got in there, I got hit on a stop-and-go. It’s definitely been a battle between those receivers and us. Right now, we’re trying to go in there and get the best of them.
"Everybody has their own responsibilities and their own assignments they can focus on during the week, not me and Orlando focused on messing up and losing a job. Everybody is comfortable right now. We’re going to go out there and handle business."
For Jenkins, it’s still personal. He will never forget the criticism he received for avoiding the tackle on a touchdown run by then- Giants running back Derrick Ward. Even though he has established himself as a physical cornerback who makes big hits rather than shying away from contact, Jenkins acknowledges that he thinks about that play every week.
Now he gets a chance to re-introduce himself in the big lights place where Jay-Z said the streets make you feel brand new.
"At first, it was a hassle, but as I worked out and went through the off-season, it definitely became a motivation," Jenkins said. "Every week, I try to make big hits. Sometimes I knock myself out trying to overdo it. But it’s definitely a motivator."
Clarence E. Hill Jr., 817-390-7760
__________________