Post Snap With Malcolm Jenkins: "I Like Seattle, But The Patriots Always Have A Plan"
Malcolm Jenkins is a Super Bowl champion and veteran NFL safety. He sits down with CBS Philly's Joe Santoliquito every week. All of Jenkins' Post Snap interviews are archived at CBSPhilly.com/Jenkins.
PHILADELPHIA, PA (CBS) — Malcolm Jenkins is very familiar with both Super Bowl teams, the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks. The Eagles' safety is leaning toward Seattle, but doesn't rule out what Bill Belichick and Tom Brady are capable of doing.
"Seattle is a second-half team, and they always seem to get off to slow starts," Jenkins said. "Then in the second half, you see Marshawn Lynch get going, Russell Wilson begins making a couple of throws, and they start. A game can get ugly against them, but the Patriots always have a plan. They'll take away whatever you do best offensively, which is probably focusing on Lynch, and make you beat them left handed.
"At the same time, you have Tom Brady, who's one of the all-time best, and this has a chance to become one of the great Super Bowl games. But I'll still take Seattle."
Jenkins said a big key for New England will be stopping Seattle's slot receiver. Green Bay may have come up with the template to stop the Seattle offense—and that's take out Lynch.
"The Patriots' secondary is better than Green Bay's secondary and they're going to be able to cover guys one-on-one," Jenkins said. "They're going to stack the line and leave their corners by themselves, because they have faith in them. I think New England has good slot receivers that may cause Seattle some trouble.
"With Seattle, when you bring down your safeties and put eight or nine in the box, Wilson doesn't throw outside. He throws the ball to his slot receivers. Whoever that slot corner is, he's going to have to be able to matchup."
Jenkins pointed out when the Eagles played Seattle and they brought up pressure, Wilson instinctively looked to Doug Baldwin. Wilson's game-winning TD pass to Baldwin in overtime against Green Bay in the NFC championship came with Baldwin in the slot running fades from the inside. The slot defender has to be able to hold up that slot receiver.
"Russell Wilson won't throw to the outside unless that outside receiver is running a post," Jenkins said. "It's why the Pats stack up better defensively than Green Bay did because their corners can play on an island. New England has to be able to stop Baldwin inside. It's going to be a great game."
Malcolm Jenkins Foundation
For the second year, The Malcolm Jenkins Foundation is a proud sponsor of Super Baskets of Hope, a program that provides gift baskets filled with toys, games and inspirational items for seriously ill children, and their parents, who are hospitalized in NFL team cities around the country. Today, TMJF volunteers helped to assemble over 4,000 gift baskets at the National Packing Event in Glendale, AZ. Jenkins and TMJF volunteers will also participate in distributing baskets to children in local area hospitals. For more information visit http://themalcolmjenkinsfoundation.org.
Follow Malcolm Jenkins on Twitter @MalcolmJenkins and like him on Facebook.
