After skipping the voluntary portion of the Eagles’ spring, safety Malcolm Jenkins has reported to mandatory minicamp, which kicks off Tuesday.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Jenkins reported for his physical today and will participate at practice starting Tuesday.
Jenkins, 31, is purportedly unhappy with his contract, which has two years left. He has outplayed the deal that has him ranked as the ninth highest-paid safety in the league, but he’s still scheduled to have base salaries of $8.1 million and $7.6 million over the next two seasons.
Had Jenkins missed this three-day minicamp, the Eagles could have fined him a total of $88,650, but his reporting should help de-escalate the situation and possibly help resolve it if the Eagles are willing to work with him. For a couple weeks, Schefter had the opinion that Jenkins would not report for this mandatory camp, but that turned out to be an incorrect opinion.
It’s important to note that Jenkins has not missed any mandatory practice. Everything he skipped this spring was voluntary and he wasn’t the only one to miss practices. It’s just that he was the only one who seemed to be missing because of a contract-related reason.
It would be hard to overstate Jenkins’ importance to the Eagles. He has made the Pro Bowl in three of his five seasons in Philadelphia and has played just about every snap on defense and many more on special teams. He plays safety, linebacker and nickel corner. Last season, he was the only member of the starting secondary to make it through the year. And he’s the unquestioned leader of the defense.
Even though he’s on the wrong side of 30 now, Jenkins is clearly one of the most important players on the roster and having him at the mandatory camp is certainly a good sign.
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