Teven Jenkins Struggles in First Game Back From Injury
Former Oklahoma State offensive tackle Teven Jenkins played in his first game back from injury Sunday night against the Green Bay Packers, but it didn’t quite go the way he wanted it to.
Jenkins had missed a large majority of the season following what was thought to be a season-ending back surgery in August after dealing with a back injury throughout the offseason and summer.
Bears head coach Matt Nagy had been adamant up until last night he didn’t want to force a return from Jenkins but got to that point Sunday night when starting left tackle Jason Peters was rolled up by defensive tackle Kenny Clark.
Over the next three quarters, Jenkins was called for two false starts and a holding call against Preston Smith, a play that he still allowed a sack on Justin Fields.
“I know that he wanted to play great today and the sack he gave up, I just told him ‘Look, it’s your first game, primetime Sunday night, you’re a rookie first time playing time right now. Of course you’re going to make mistakes, you have to go in there knowing you’re going to make mistakes and just learn from them and make sure they don’t happen again,’” Bears quarterback Justin Fields said of Jenkins.
“It’s never easy coming into this league as a rookie at tackle,” Bears coach Matt Nagy said after the game. “I think he’s gonna have a really really good career. I think his future’s very very bright. You learn from these moments, you really do. He’ll be just fine. He’s gonna rally and he’s gonna do everything he can to get better.”
He was a part of a rather nice touchdown play though.
Despite having to play Jenkins prematurely, resulting in a rough outing, Matt Nagy is confident in the rookie out of Topeka, KS.
“I love Teven. I think he’s gonna have a really, really good career,” Nagy said, via NBCSportsChicago.com. “His future is very, very bright, and you learn from these moments. You really do. So, he’ll be just fine. He’s going to rally and he’s going to do everything he can to get better.”