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GREEN BAY – A pillar of the Green Bay Packers offensive line during the Matt LaFleur era, veteran Elgton Jenkins will be released.
A source confirmed multiple reports that the Packers plan to release Jenkins before the start of free agency March 11.
The move was made primarily for salary-cap reasons – Jenkins counted $24 million against the cap and the release provides the Packers with $19.5 million of cap space. Between the trade of Rashan Gary to Dallas and the Jenkins release, the Packers have cleared $30 million in cap space.
The decision to release Jenkins was affected by an ankle injury he suffered against the Philadelphia Eagles that ended his season. Jenkins’ move from left guard, where he was a staple for most of his career, to center was not smooth and the combination of his cap number and the development of Sean Rhyan as his replacement led to the move.
The Packers made the decision to move Jenkins to center after signing free-agent guard Aaron Banks during the 2025 offseason. Jenkins had played center in college, practiced there occasionally and started four games, but he had not played it on a regular basis in the NFL.
Jenkins, 30, was so versatile – he started at four different positions during his career – the Packers thought it would be an easy adjustment for him. He struggled for most of the season, although poor play by the guards contributed to it, but was starting to play better in the middle of the season.
If he had continued playing at center, it’s possible he might have been retained, although the cap number would have been an issue.
Jenkins started 94 of the 96 games he played in seven seasons. He suffered a torn ACL made way through the 2021 season but was able to return in less than nine months. He only missed one game in ’22, one game in ’23 and no games in ’24.
He played in seven games last season.
During his career, he started 67 games at left guard, 13 at center, eight at left tackle, and six at right tackle.
He was selected to his first career Pro Bowl in ‘20, becoming just the third offensive lineman in team history to be named to the team during his first two seasons in the NFL. He made the Pro Bowl once more in ’22 as an alternate.
The Packers have cleared $39 million in cap space thus far. They were about $5 million over a week ago, but by also restructuring the contract of safety Xavier McKinney, they created some breathing room.
They lost about $6 million in cap space with the acquisition of linebacker Zaire Franklin from the Indianapolis Colts and also signed three of their own free agents – Rhyan, running back Chris Brooks and linebacker Nick Niemann. It will depend on how Rhyan and Brooks’ contracts are structured before knowing how much they’ll count against the cap.
This article originally appeared on Packers News: Packers to release offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins, 2-time Pro Bowler
Continue reading...
A source confirmed multiple reports that the Packers plan to release Jenkins before the start of free agency March 11.
The move was made primarily for salary-cap reasons – Jenkins counted $24 million against the cap and the release provides the Packers with $19.5 million of cap space. Between the trade of Rashan Gary to Dallas and the Jenkins release, the Packers have cleared $30 million in cap space.
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The decision to release Jenkins was affected by an ankle injury he suffered against the Philadelphia Eagles that ended his season. Jenkins’ move from left guard, where he was a staple for most of his career, to center was not smooth and the combination of his cap number and the development of Sean Rhyan as his replacement led to the move.
The Packers made the decision to move Jenkins to center after signing free-agent guard Aaron Banks during the 2025 offseason. Jenkins had played center in college, practiced there occasionally and started four games, but he had not played it on a regular basis in the NFL.
Jenkins, 30, was so versatile – he started at four different positions during his career – the Packers thought it would be an easy adjustment for him. He struggled for most of the season, although poor play by the guards contributed to it, but was starting to play better in the middle of the season.
If he had continued playing at center, it’s possible he might have been retained, although the cap number would have been an issue.
Jenkins started 94 of the 96 games he played in seven seasons. He suffered a torn ACL made way through the 2021 season but was able to return in less than nine months. He only missed one game in ’22, one game in ’23 and no games in ’24.
He played in seven games last season.
During his career, he started 67 games at left guard, 13 at center, eight at left tackle, and six at right tackle.
He was selected to his first career Pro Bowl in ‘20, becoming just the third offensive lineman in team history to be named to the team during his first two seasons in the NFL. He made the Pro Bowl once more in ’22 as an alternate.
The Packers have cleared $39 million in cap space thus far. They were about $5 million over a week ago, but by also restructuring the contract of safety Xavier McKinney, they created some breathing room.
They lost about $6 million in cap space with the acquisition of linebacker Zaire Franklin from the Indianapolis Colts and also signed three of their own free agents – Rhyan, running back Chris Brooks and linebacker Nick Niemann. It will depend on how Rhyan and Brooks’ contracts are structured before knowing how much they’ll count against the cap.
This article originally appeared on Packers News: Packers to release offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins, 2-time Pro Bowler
Continue reading...
