Kenbrell Thompkins ~ ~ ~

[kelly]

Kenbrell Thompkins has had an itinerant three NFL seasons, but he's latched on with the Jets and proved to be a valuable asset in the receiving corps, even though he's only been on the active roster for 10 games.Thompkins began his NFL career two seasons ago as an undrafted free agent with the Patriots, and he looked like he was on his way after catching 32 passes for 462 yards and four touchdowns as a rookie. But by October 2014, he was waived, after which he quickly landed with the Raiders, who cut him this summer in training camp.

Thompkins wound up with the Patriots again, this time on the practice squad. The Jets scooped him up and added him to their practice squad after he was released three weeks later. He then got promoted to the 53-man roster on Oct. 19, after wideout Quincy Enunwa was suspended.Thompkins has been on the roster ever since, and he's got 17 catches for 165 yards to his credit while working as the Jets' No. 4 receiver behind Brandon Marshall, Eric Decker, and Enunwa. Thompkins had his Big Moment when he caught a 43-yard pass to set up the game-winning field goal in a Week 15 victory at the Cowboys—a play in which Thompkins recognized that cornerback Byron Jones had a tendency to ease up when the coverage was Cover 2.

This week, as the Jets ready to play the Bills on Sunday at Ralph Wilson Stadium with a playoff berth hanging in the balance, Thompkins spoke to NJ Advance Media about his NFL journey. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Q: Back in September/October, you get released from the Patriots and a couple of days go by until you sign on with the Jets? What was that like? Most of us have this impression that playing in the NFL is always glamorous, but it can be a tough business for most of you.

A: "Yeah, you know, I end up back in New England, and I end up getting released again. And it was just like, 'Oh, here we go again.' But one thing about me, man, I never stop believing. I never doubted myself, not once. I knew that all I needed was a chance, an opportunity. I think I'm a hard-working kid. I think that I don't take [anything] for granted. I take a lot of pride in what I do, and how I approach this game of football, man. I just knew that opportunity was going to come again. I just knew that if my opportunity came I had to make sure that I don't take it for granted. I'm coming to work every day and making sure that my antenna's up, and making sure that I'm doing the things I need to do."

Q: Does it take a while to get acclimated and to learn the playbook when you come in in the middle of the season like you did?

A: Yeah, it's just pretty much how much time you spend working your craft. When I say working your craft, that's got everything to do with studying the playbook and actually getting familiar with guys in the locker room. I think I'm a thorough kid. I think I'm an original. I think guys in the locker room took heed with that, and I think they respect me, and I respect them.

Q: Any moment when things started to click, or was it more gradual as time went on?

A: "I came in first day, and my first day stepping on the field, my mind was set. My first time, when I walked out on that field, I was ready; my mind was set. I wasn't trying to take any steps back, and if I made a mistake, I was trying not to make that mistake again. I think that actually put me in position to actually get a chance. I'm just taking everything one day at a time, and not trying to take my opportunity for granted."

Q: Eric and Brandon get so much of the attention—and rightfully so, considering what they've accomplished in their careers—but how do you view your role in this offense?

A: "I think my role is actually to be a baller. I think that's what I'm trying to do. I think it's important that we have some guys that take some attention [from defenses] off those guys. That's what I'm trying to do. I don't think it's all about me. I think it's Quincy doing a great job, Bilal [Powell]'s doing a tremendous job. As for me, I'm trying to make plays for this team, just be the baller that the team needs me to be."

Q: Have you noticed whether teams are defending you differently?

A: "Yeah. That's kind of how the game goes. When guys come in that you're not familiar with, it's like you've got to go back to the drawing board, and I think it's definitely helped us out a lot."

Q: That little tic you picked up on in the Cowboys' coverage: Is that something you've been coached to learn, or is something you've always known? I guess for those of us who don't play pro football, where does that kind of understanding of the game come from?

A: "That was just Xs and Os. You just know that in this particular coverage, as a wideout, you know  if you're going to get the ball in this coverage, you know where you're going to get it at. And that's exactly what happened. I just felt that we had a chance, and I alerted Fitz, and the opportunity came, and [quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick] remembered me alerting him and that. He actually gave me a chance, and I happened to be in the right spot."

Q: I get the sense Fitz is really easy to communicate with, with that kind of feedback about what you see from coverages and such.

A: "Absolutely. Fitz is the guy—he loves that. He's got two eyes, you know? To actually just get feedback from us and [for us to] let him know what we see, if we get a chance, we can actually get an idea in his head, like, 'OK, I see what you're seeing.' And when things like that happen and you communicate with the quarterback, you can get create more plays and create more opportunities."

>    http://www.nj.com/jets/index.ssf/2016/01/4_downs_with_kenbrell_thompkins_on_finding_his_nic.html#incart_river_index

[pointman]

I love how guys are talking about how they communicate what they see on the field with Fitz. Seems like it is creating openings for things to happen. 

[TuscanyTile2]

One thing I meant to point out about last week's game was the classy move by Belichick last week when Kenbrell got injured.  BB went over to the stretcher and said something to him (I assume words like "hope you're okay").  Belichick is probably a much better guy than he outwardly appears in his post-game conferences.  I bet there are plenty of "villains" who are actually decent human beings in real life.  Loosely related, Tom Brady defended Peyton after the rumors about PEDs.  So these "mortal enemies" on the field are friendly off it.  Again, probably decent human beings.

That said, eff the Pats!! 

[munchmemory]

One thing I meant to point out about last week's game was the classy move by Belichick last week when Kenbrell got injured.  BB went over to the stretcher and said something to him (I assume words like "hope you're okay").  Belichick is probably a much better guy than he outwardly appears in his post-game conferences.  I bet there are plenty of "villains" who are actually decent human beings in real life.  Loosely related, Tom Brady defended Peyton after the rumors about PEDs.  So these "mortal enemies" on the field are friendly off it.  Again, probably decent human beings.

That said, eff the Pats!! 

Folks forget how much we loved Belicheat when he was our DC.

[LIJetsFan]

Thompkins really sounds raw but he is certainly an upgrade over the likes of Stephen Hill and Devin Smith ATM.  It's just "very Gailey" that he gets the #4 spot over Kerley but I suppose it a "fit" thing.  

[kelly]

-- The timing was simply perfect -- or perfectly awful, from a New York Jets perspective.

With 24 seconds left in Sunday's game, the Jets trailed the Buffalo Bills22-17 and had the ball, second-and-1 at their own 28-yard line. Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick took the shotgun snap and heaved a bomb up the right sideline. Kenbrell Thompkins was running a straight go route and, while in full stride, extended his hands. The ball dropped right into them at the Bills' 41-yard line.But just before Thompkins could pull the ball into his chest and tuck it away, Bills cornerback Mario Butler put his shoulder right into Thompkins' hands, knocking the ball loose.

"Man ... it was all go routes and Fitz, he threw the ball out there, gave me a chance," Thompkins said Monday of the play. "I tried to make a play, got my hands on it, and it was knocked loose."On the next play, Fitzpatrick threw a game-ending interception.Thompkins admitted the loss, which knocked the Jets from playoff contention, hurt all the more because the team was that close to winning.

"I would have scored," Thompkins said.

After the game, fellow receiver Brandon Marshall seemed to take a shot at Thompkins when he said the Jets had a chance to snatch a late victory and didn't do it."At the end, we had our chances," Marshall said. "We didn't come through in our [WR] room. We've got to take advantage of that moment. That's when you get a chance to make your name, and we just didn't do that."

"He's absolutely right," Thompkins said Monday. "This is what we play the game for. You got a young guy in the NFL trying to make a name for himself and opportunities like that come your way you want to make those plays. But unfortunately it didn't go that way."

>   http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york-jets/post/_/id/57786/jets-kenbrell-thompkins-on-catch-that-got-away-i-would-have-scored