INDIANAPOLIS — Kris Jenkins’ first memory of professional football came at a young age, in an abnormal situation.
It was 2005 and Jenkins, a week away from turning five years old, was brought onto the field in Charlotte, North Carolina, following an NFL game that pitted two members of his family. His father, also named Kris and played 10 seasons in the NFL, was starring for the Carolina Panthers at the time. His uncle, Cullen Jenkins, played for the Green Bay Packers.
My biggest memory was stepping down on the field and just looking up in the Panthers’ stadium and seeing everybody, seeing the crowd, seeing all the big players,” Jenkins told reporters on Wednesday. “Ever since then, when I touched the football field,I wanted to be like that.”
The hulking 6-foot-3, 305-pound defensive tackle will soon get his own chance. After four seasons at Michigan, having twice earned all-Big Ten honors, being voted captain by his teammates and earning All-American status in 2023, Jenkins made the decision to declare for the NFL draft. If he hears his name called in late-April, he would be the second member of the family to get drafted (his father was a second-round pick in 2001).
The younger Jenkins was on hand at the NFL Scouting Combine this week, the annual pre-draft event in Indianapolis that gives prospects like him an opportunity to sell himself. One good look at Jenkins and you realize there’s plenty to sell.
“It’s an unbelievable experience, unbelievable opportunity,” Jenkins said. “Something you reamed of as a kid. Finally being in this position, being fortunate enough to be here — you just soak in every opportunity, soak in the moment.
Jenkins credited his father — a star at nearby Belleville High School, the University of Maryland and two-time first-team all-pro defensive tackle in the NFL — with helping change his mentality. As he previously told MLive, Jenkins, a notorious jokester, didn’t always pay attention in practice during his early days at Michigan.
That has since changed, obviously, but he called his father “a hard mentor.”
“He knows what it takes to get to that point,” Jenkins said. “He knew. I needed to change my work ethic if I needed to get into a position like this.”
The Michigan star took on a more regular role the last two seasons, starting all 14 games in 2022 and all 15 games during the Wolverines’ national title run in ‘23. He was primarily an interior, pass-rushing tackle who did what he could to get to the quarterback. Jenkins had 54 tackles in ‘22 but only 3 1/2 for a loss and two sacks. His production took a dip this past season thanks to a rotating cast of players on the inside, to 36 tackles (four for a loss) and two sacks. But he also added an interception and finished the season with 18 hurries, according to Pro Football Focus.
“Have you seen that dude? Have you seen that dude?,” linebacker Junior Colson asked reporters. “I don’t think I have to say too much. That man is a specimen. Just his work ethic; he grinds day in, day out to make sure he’s great for the game. And when game time comes, he falls to the level of his training.”
Nicknamed “The Mutant,” Jenkins is perhaps best known for his flamboyant personality and enthusiastic attitude. Former head coach Jim Harbaugh literally made him the poster boy for his “Enthusiasm Unknown to Mankind” phrase inside the Michigan team facility. But he’s also a big dude who knows football and excels at it.
