Florida State Loses DE Brandon Jenkins For The Season

All-ACC defensive end Brandon Jenkins returned for his senior season after nearly opting to enter the 2012 NFL Draft, and the worst he could have possibly feared in coming back has happened. Jenkins suffered a left foot injury that will keep him out for the rest of the season, Bruce Feldman is reporting.

Jenkins was widely projected as a first round draft pick after two seasons where he was pretty dominant for the Seminoles, even though he had a bit of a down year last year. At 6’3″ 260 pounds, he still figures to project really well to the NFL as either a defensive end or outside linebacker in a 3-4 defensive scheme. In the last two seasons, he has racked up 21.5 sacks and is constantly making plays behind the line.

FSU has an absolutely stacked defensive line, so they shouldn’t suffer too much in terms of production at this position, and it could be a great opportunity for some young or inexperienced guys to step it up.  Bjoern Werner has been touted as arguably the best NFL prospect currently on FSU’s roster, and this could be an opportunity for him to steal the spotlight and make a huge impact. Florida State still dominated their first game without Jenkins, and they have a very talented roster, so this injury figures to hurt Jenkins’ NFL Draft stock much more than it does FSU’s title hopes in 2012.