PITTSFORD — Keonta Jenkins is not new. And he’s not playing like it.
Jenkins was making a push toward the Buffalo Bills’ 53-man roster bubble last year until a hand injury in a Week 2 preseason game against the Chicago Bears cost him the remainder of the preseason. Still, Jenkins was among the last to be notified they were released on cutdown day.
And then Jenkins was a practice-squad call-up during the first two weeks of the regular season. A hamstring injury cost him some time and then he waited. For 16 weeks.
Jenkins was activated for the regular-season finale, making five tackles in 23 snaps. The Bills re-signed Jenkins to a reserve/future contract, but Sean McDermott was still the coach.
When the head coach is fired and a new defensive staff is brought in, it doesn’t always bode well for a player in Jenkins’ position. Would he fit into a 3-4 defense? Heck, last year was the first time in his life he’d been a full-time linebacker.
Through the first week of training camp, Jenkins is actually in a better spot than he was a year ago. He’s consistently seeing second-team weakside linebacker snaps, occasionally getting first-team reps as starters Terrel Bernard and Dorian Williams recover from offseason injuries.
“I thought he was one of the most improved guys in the offseason,” Bills inside linebackers coach John Egorugwu told GNN Sports before practice Tuesday. “You can tell he’s bulked up a little bit. I think that’s going to help him in terms of his weight and he’s been able to keep it on. And he’s still new to the position. So it’s been fun to see his growth and hopefully continue to see that.”
Jenkins played wide receiver, cornerback and safety growing up in Jacksonville, Florida. He was recruited to Virginia Tech and started three games at safety during his first two seasons, playing for former Bills safety Pierson Prioleau.
After gaining 20 pounds by his junior season, Jenkins was moved to STAR, a hybrid outside linebacker-safety role. He recorded 90 tackles in 19 starts over his final season, making 10 tackles for a loss as a senior in 2023.
Jenkins wasn’t drafted, but he signed with the Bills and McDermott, who had a successful track record for playing converted safeties at linebacker. From Thomas Davis to Shaq Thompson to Matt Milano, the formula also seemed to fit Jenkins.
But actually playing linebacker in the NFL takes some adjustment. Jenkins got caught flat-footed during practice Tuesday, as running back James Cook made a subtle cutback as the play flowed away from Jenkins.
By time Jenkins realized what happened, Cook — one of the best cutback runners in football — ran past him.
“Just understanding the fit,” Jenkins told GNN Sports after practice Tuesday. “Understanding how fast the ball can hit, how a (weakside linebacker) can attack it and just learning the offensive piece.”
That’s a common response from someone moving to linebacker. Former Minnesota Vikings first-round pick Lewis Cine said the same thing while the Bills were trying to move him from safety to linebacker in 2023.
The closer to the line of scrimmage, the faster a player needs to react. Even moving from outside linebacker to inside linebacker changes reaction time.
And there’s also changing sightlines. Jenkins had a broad view of the field as a safety, but the field is condensed at linebacker and sometimes it requires weeding through traffic to see the assignment.
“A lot of times when you’re out in space, it’s just a different look in terms of where your eyes need to be and things that just happen a lot faster in the box,” Egorugwu said. “So just getting used to that. Getting used to the keys and things of that nature that you’re seeing in front of you. That’s usually the biggest thing.”
The biggest thing that excites the Bills is Jenkins’ athleticism, particularly at 6-foot-2. He’s still listed at 211 pounds on the team website, but everyone says that’s a low number.
Jenkins will still have to add weight to handle the pounding as a run defender, but it’s a passing league and it’s harder to find athletic linebackers who can excel in pass coverage.
If Jenkins continues to play at his current level, he could become the 10th Bills player since 2017 to make the 53-man roster after spending a season on the practice squad.
“The (new) scheme kind of helped me and fit towards my playstyle a little bit more,” Jenkins said. “Getting more attached to routes and just kind of more simplified. It’s a little bit more matchy and I think that just fits my playstyle a little bit more.”