Bears offensive tackle Teven Jenkins has been a hot topic of conversation over the first week of training camp. After participating in the first day of camp, Jenkins has been absent for four straight practices.
Head coach Matt Eberflus hasn’t revealed much about what’s going on with Jenkins, other than he’s “working through something with trainers” and that he’s day-to-day.
Now, there is an interesting development out of Chicago.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Bears have received calls and have entertained trade talks about Jenkins. And it sounds like Jenkins has drawn plenty of interest from around the league.
The #Bears have received calls and have held trade talks centered around OT Teven Jenkins, sources tell me and @MikeGarafolo. The former 2nd round pick has drawn interest based on his potential. A situation to watch.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 1, 2022
This comes after ESPN 1000 and NBC Sports Chicago’s David Kaplan reported that there’s disconnect between Jenkins and the new coaching staff.
“From what I’m hearing, it’s not a serious injury,” Kaplan said Saturday. “What I’m hearing is that there’s a high level of disconnect between Teven and the new coaching staff, especially Chris Morgan, the new offensive line coach.”
It’s not exactly a surprise to hear that a new regime would be willing to part with a player that was handed down to them. But it is surprising considering general manager Ryan Poles singled out Jenkins when he first got to Chicago. But it doesn’t sound like talent is the issue.
“As one person who would know close to the team said to me, ‘He’s their most talented lineman,'” Kaplan added. “But I’m also hearing he’s wildly immature.”
It’s been a rough two years for Jenkins in Chicago. The former second-round pick missed most of his rookie season after having back surgery last summer. Then, after starting this offseason at right tackle with the starters, Jenkins was demoted to the second-team during the end of OTAs and minicamp. And it’s where he started training camp.
Given everything that happened, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Bears deal Jenkins.
