Sadly, does Teven Jenkins remind you of this former Chicago Bears offensive lineman?

Teven Jenkins missed another game this season as he sat out in Week 16 vs. the Cardinals. It was the fifth game he had not suited up for. The offensive guard was out with a concussion this week but missed the first four weeks of the year due to a leg injury. The Chicago Bears worked him back in slowly as they put him on a snap count for their Week 5 matchup against Washington. He then started every game since. That is until he suffered the concussion last week against the Browns.

The good news is that the concussion is not related to any of his previous missed games in the NFL. In his rookie season, Jenkins hardly played due to a back injury. Under the Ryan Pace and Matt Nagy regime, the team tried to see if Jenkins could handle playing left tackle. Things did not go well. Jenkins allowed two sacks and 11 pressures on limited snaps over his five-game span. The thing is, Jenkins was never supposed to be a starting left tackle in the NFL.

Under the new Ryan Poles' regime, the team moved him to right tackle. This is where he played mostly in college. However, things didn't go well, and after some offseason trade rumors and some reported grumblings, Jenkins locked in at right guard for the regular season. The Chicago Bears decided to rotate Teven Jenkins and Lucas Patrick at right guard throughout the opening few weeks. A somewhat strange decision, but Patrick couldn't snap the ball to start the 2022 season due to a hand injury and Luke Getsy obviously preferred his guy in Patrick.

Teven Jenkins started the first two games of the Chicago Bears 2022 season, but after a rough go against the Packers, Jenkins found himself listed as the backup. One reason for the change was that Matt Eberflus felt Patrick had a better Wednesday practice than Jenkins. In that game though, Jenkins was the better player and won his starting spot back. When healthy, Teven Jenkins is one of the best offensive guards in the NFL. The problem is, he can't stay healthy.

Although different paths, it feels like Teven Jenkins is the Chicago Bears new Kyle Long

I own one offensive lineman jersey and it is not Olin Kreutz. The jersey I own is a Kyle Long jersey. Long came into the league in 2013. He started at right guard his first two years and played at a very high level. He made the Pro Bowl in both his rookie and sophomore seasons. He was voted as a Second-Team All-Pro. Then, in his third year, the Chicago Bears moved him to right tackle. He was not as good at the tackle spot, but after three relatively healthy seasons, Kyle Long's body started to fail him. He was constantly on the injury report and never started a double-digit amount of games again.

Teven Jenkins hasn't had the same hot start to his career as Kyle Long, but injuries are definitely starting to pile up. After the back injury in his rookie season and the neck injury last year, doubts about Jenkins' durability are valid. This season, his injuries haven't seemed connected to the spine thank goodness, but once again he's missing multiple games.

Now, heading into his fourth and final season of his rookie deal, Ryan Poles and the Chicago Bears will find themselves facing another tough decision. Will they extend Jenkins hoping for better days ahead knowing he's elite when healthy? Or, will they plan to move on from the oft-injured lineman?

They might not be the same paths, and Kyle Long proved himself even more than Teven Jenkins did to start his career, but one can't help but see similarities in the aggressive maulers who have shifted positions along the offensive line to only find themselves constantly on the injury report. What do you think? Is it fair to compare these two seeing Long played nearly every game his first three years and found himself in multiple Pro Bowls? Probably not completely.

My take here isn't that Teven Jenkins is as good as Kyle Long was during his NFL career. However, I would argue if Jenkins were to remain healthy, there is a good chance he would get similar accolades to Long. Jenkins has proven himself to be one of the best interior linemen in the game. His inability to stay on the field prevents him from receiving the national attention needed to be voted into anything.

The main reasons for the comparison are obvious to me though. Both are seen as maulers with aggressive play styles and put their bodies on the line. Both are seen standing up for their teammates even after the whistle blows. Both had to shift positions along the offensive line. Both were often injured during their career.

Now, the hope for Teven Jenkins is to see his career take an almost opposite path to Long's. Jenkins started off not being able to stay healthy, whereas Long only missed one game in three years to start his career. Long established himself on a national level early in his career whereas Jenkins' inability to stay on the field has not allowed him to receive as high of praise. However, the hope for Jenkins — and possibly hope for the Chicago Bears too should he remain on the team beyond 2024 — is that he stays healthy going forward and takes his place among the truly elite.

One thing is certain, Ryan Poles needs a better backup plan at offensive guard than Cody Whitehair in 2024.