A season ago Teven Jenkins insisted he was still a tackle playing guard.
Now, he not only feels like a guard, but a left guard at that.
Jenkins has made the move from right guard to left guard and has been well supported by a strong offseason of work as well as a line in a good state of stability.
"I feel like a guard now," Jenkins said. "Maybe now I can do the emergency tackle if it ever comes down to it.
"But right now I'd say that I'd label myself as a guard, as it is right now. I;ve been moving these past two years as right guard, left guard. That's how I'd label myself as."
It all started early for Jenkins as offensive line coach Chris Morgan told him early in free agency he would move to left guard after the signing of Nate Davis at right guard. So he knew, and then he could start working on the stance, footwork and punch required on the line's left side.
"They signed Nate at whatever time in the morning and five minutes later that's when C-Mo called me and told me I was moving to left and to make sure I was all comfortable and ready to go when we come back to right now," Jenkins said.
So he did. He had all the time to work on the change and did it. He also worked at Pilates to strengthen small muscles near his spine to try to avoid the back/neck injury issues he went through for two years.
"Those small muscles are the ones that get you," Jenkins said. "They are the ones that can protect you from further injury. It's the muscles you really neglect that you never think about."
The other benefit on Jenkins' side is the same line playing every day the last two weeks of the offseason and then on into training camp. Familiarity is something last year's line never had but this one already has some.
"It's definitely a thing that you know who you're playing next to, and you can build up that chemistry," Jenkins said. "I've been hanging out with Cody (Whitehair) and Lucas (Patrick), Braxton (Jones), Nate (Davis), Darnell Wright). We hang out all the time. This past week, we all went out to a restaurant. We were there for a couple hours, hanging out, just talking about stuff.
"Just knowing that, heading into camp, I know who I'm going to play next to is pretty good."
It's all combining to make him feel like the starting left guard.
"In your heart, you know, you wanna fight for 'that's who I used to be,' " he said. "You live in the past.
"I need to look forward. Right now, for me, it's gonna be at guard. That’s my title right now."
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