Will the Colts trade for CB Mike Jenkins?

Everybody and his brother, including ESPN’s John Clayton, are saying that the Colts are interested in trading for disgruntled Cowboys cornerback Mike “Possum” Jenkins (5102/197/4.38c in 2008). It makes sense. The Colts have a dire need for quality corners, Jenkins is no longer the apple of Dallas’ eye and his contract is trade-friendly. Of course, things aren’t always as easy as that.

• If Jenkins is so great, why did Dallas trade its first- and second-round draft picks for the right to pick Morris Claiborne at No. 6 AND sign veteran free agent Brandon Carr to a five-year, $50.1 million deal? In fact, since Orlando Scandrick is better suited to cover slots, Jenkins would probably be team’s fourth corner. There’s a reason for that. Despite Jenkins' shocking numbers and workouts, he has not actually played that well in the NFL. Last season, he allowed opposing passers a 88.5 rating, which is pretty average for a starting corner, and not the stuff No. 1 guys are made of. For comparison, Carr allowed a 61.7 rating for Kansas City last season. Sure Jenkins is better than what the Colts have, but I have seen him give up on plays and avoid contact, and that’s not what you want a veteran acquisition to show the youngsters around him.

• The reason much of this came up was because Jenkins had just one year left on his contract — at a sweetheart $1.052 million salary cap hit — and was unlikely to re-sign in Dallas. Of course, any deal would be conditional on Jenkins signing a new deal with his new team. But why would he want to come to a rebuilding team in Indy? Well, he may just want to get out of Dallas for more playing time and a long-term contract. But what's in it for Dallas want to give him up? They could very easily keep him on the team as their No. 4 corner and potential injury replacement, and then allow him to leave as a free agent, which (depending on the contract he signs with his new team) would yield Dallas a nice compensatory draft pick, maybe even better than they would get in a trade.

• The Colts are rebuilding, and investing a lot of cap space in a 27-year-old corner who has never fulfilled his seemingly limitless potential might not be the best idea for the long run.


So, will it happen or not? At this point, I think it's unlikely. The Colts are more likely to keep their picks, and take their lumps.