Florida CB Janoris Jenkins was recently dismissed from the football program there and is now looking to either transfer to another school or go pro. If he does decide to enter the NFL, teams can select him in the Supplemental Draft. The Supplemental Draft is in place to accomidate players that either missed the official filing deadline to declare eligibility for the regular Draft, or for players like Jenkins that run into issues with their teams or for other reasons, and want to go pro. The way it works: teams place a 'bid' on players that they want - the bid is represented by the value of a draft pick. Whichever team places the highest bid on a player gets their rights, but then must forfeit that pick in next years draft.
What is Jenkins worth? Before he decided to return to Florida for another year, he was actually in the 1st Round discussion. He's a shutdown, All-SEC cornerback that has had success against some of the top players in college football. Rob Staton is very high on Jenkins and ranked him behind only Patrick Peterson and Jimmy Smith at cornerback. I think Rob has a very good eye for talent and tend to trust his scouting so the idea that Jenkins could now be available is pretty intriguing.
Of course, you have to weigh your options. The Seahawks did just select two corners in this year's draft in Richard Sherman and Byron Maxwell, and used another pick on Walter Thurmond last year. They still have Marcus Trufant and recently signed Brandon Browner to a futures deal. After all this, do they want to give up a potentially high draft pick next season for the rights to Janoris Jenkins?
At 5'11 185 he's about the size of Walter Thurmond and possesses elite coverage ability. He's aggressive, competitive, and has the potential to be a true shutdown at the NFL level down the road. If he fits into Pete Carroll's scheme as well as he would appear to, it might be worth it. Sherman, Maxwell, Browner, and company are good prospects but are by no means a shoe-in to succeed in the NFL. Jenkins has through the roof potential but has off-field and character concerns which may dissuade the Hawks from offering much. They passed on Jimmy Smith because of these off-field concerns so it stands to reason they'd do the same with Jenkins.
So what would be his value? For me, I'd say place a bid at the 3rd or 4th round range and hope to get him. If you spend anything higher on him you're running the risk of giving up a very early 1st or 2nd round pick in next years draft (obviously depending on how much the Seahawks compete in 2011).
What would you say?