He'll be returning to his home state this weekend, and his parents won't even be there to see him.

Jennings said that his parents are planning to make the 400-mile trip from Live Oak, Fla., to Miami to attend the University of Miami-Virginia Tech game on Thursday night. It's Senior Night, and the Jennings family plans to watch Hurricanes cornerback Bruce Johnson, who is the son of Kelly Jennings' older sister, Cassandra.

The Seahawks cornerback said that his parents don't want to make the trip twice in a week, so they'll be skipping the Seahawks-Dolphins game.

"I'll see them in the offseason," Jennings said with a shrug. "Of course, I'd love for them to be there. It's always great to see your parents. But I don't let it bother me."

Jennings added that his parents have seen him play live just three times during his three-year NFL career.

(heraldnet.com)

Twenty-five-year-old Kelly Jennings was Wilson this time last season: a second-year player who had moved into the starting lineup and improved each week. Those days seem so far away now.

Since Jennings got demoted to the role of Wilson's backup, he's trying not to let his confidence waver.

"You've just got to let it go," he said of the negative energy that comes with losing a starting job. "It's tough to let it go because you want to be good, and if you're not, you feel like you're letting people down. But if you hold on to that, you'll never get back to where you need to be."

Seahawks fans have seen how confidence can affect a players' career -- both good and bad. While former first-round pick Marcus Trufant gained so much confidence early last year that he went on to have a Pro Bowl season, former starting safety Michael Boulware lost so much confidence during his third season in Seattle that he eventually got shipped out of town.

Confidence, at the defensive back position more than any other, can be the fine line that separates the Pro Bowler from the unemployed.

"As a defensive back, you have to be able to brush things off very quickly," Seahawks safety Brian Russell said. "There comes a time when every defensive back gives up a play. You've got to get ready for the next play because if you let it linger in your mind, it's going to get ugly for you."

While teammates say that confidence has been a big part of Wilson's emergence, they claim that Jennings has shown no signs of losing his. Even after the third-year player missed a tackle to help set up the Philadelphia Eagles' second touchdown last Sunday, Jennings kept his head high.

"Kell, his confidence level is there," safety Deon Grant said. "He's just real quiet, so when people see his demeanor, they think his confidence level might not be high. It's high; he's just a quiet dude."

Defensive coordinator John Marshall said he hasn't noticed any change in Jennings's psyche.

"He's not in the tank or anything like that," Marshall said. "He's very workmanlike about what he's doing. But I didn't ask him about how he's feeling or anything -- because I was afraid he'd tell me."

Defensive back Jordan Babineaux is among the players who have rushed to Jennings's defense this season. When reporters descended on Jennings' locker after the benching, Babineaux tried to shoo them away.

It brought back memories of a postgame locker room incident in 2006, when Babineaux barked at reporters who had surrounded Boulware's locker minutes after the safety had given up a game-winning touchdown pass against San Diego.

Babineaux did not want to compare the situations, and he added that he isn't trying to single Jennings out.

"At this point right now, being in the situation we're in, we could all use a little uplift," Babineaux said this week.

Jennings started 20 of Seattle's past 22 games -- a concussion relegated him to a lesser role in the Oct. 5 game against the New York Giants -- before officially losing his starting job on Oct. 12. He had given up too many long passes, including two touchdowns, in the first four games of this season.

This week, Jennings said that demotion came as no surprise.

(heraldnet.com)

Kelly Jennings' decline, however, was not. Jennings did a good job last year for the Seahawks, but this year he has been unacceptably bad, so much so that he lost his starting spot. Surprising for a third year player. His replacement, Wilson, took some time to adjust, and had a few bad games, but has started to play well.

(seatownsports.net)

RENTON -- Sunday's blowout loss to the New York Giants came with a price for at least two Seattle Seahawks.

Cornerback Kelly Jennings and wide receiver Billy McMullen appear unlikely to start Sunday's game against Green Bay.

"We've talked to the players, and my point of emphasis was that they try not to take those things personally," coach Mike Holmgren said. "As disappointed as (they) might be, it's our job to try and win the football games and put the best group out there. And you kind of have to earn that every week. And so that's why we did a couple of things."

Jennings, who will be replaced by Josh Wilson, said that he understood the decision.

“I feel like I have a job to do on the defense, and right now I don’t feel like I’m getting it done," said Jennings, who gave up a long touchdown on the Giants' first drive Sunday. "It’s a coaches’ decision, and if I was a coach, I would do it the same way. For me personally, I can only try to get better. I can only do what I can do.”

Koren Robinson is likely to replace McMullen in the starting lineup.

CB Kelly Jennings, who was victimized on Hixon’s TD catch that initiated last Sunday’s carnage, suffered a concussion that makes his status for the Packers this Sunday questionable. But he had been having a very rough time this season before the injury, and his replacement should he be unable to start this Sunday, Josh Wilson, also has been easy pickings for opposing receivers. 

(pfw.com)

The other injury from Sunday's game is Kelly Jennings, the cornerback who suffered a broken rib. He had an injection at halftime and finished the game. He won't practice much this week, but is expected to be available for the game against St. Louis.


(seattletimes.com)

Kelly Jennings. The team's "other" cornerback had an impressive morning in what was a bounce-back performance by the entire starting secondary after they had problems stopping the Vikings' passing game in Minneapolis.

Jennings' best play was batting away a deep pass from Charlie Frye to Nate Burleson. But it wasn't his only play. The team's right cornerback also stopped Ben Obomanu short of the needed first-down yardage in a third-down drill and did it again on a third-down pass to Maurice Morris in a record-zone drill.

(blog.seattlepi.com)

Kelly Jennings played great coverage on a deep pass thrown to Bobby Engram during a seven-on-seven passing drill ...

This caught my eye because I think Jennings is about perfectly suited to shutdown Bobby Engram. Good cover, good reaction, great speed/quickness and enough strength. Obviously, then, it doesn't take much strength. I'll discuss this in greater detail during the podcast, but whatever Engram did last season, he's not who Seattle want to run their passing offense through.

(fieldgulls.com)

TOP DEFENSIVE PLAY: Cornerback Kelly Jennings and receiver Trent Shelton wrestled for a pass during the afternoon practice. Jennings showed it's not about the size of the player so much as the size of the fight in the player. The 180-pound corner refused to let go of the pass, battling for control of the ball with a receiver that outweighed him by 22 pounds. When the mess got unknotted, Jennings still had his hands on the ball.

(seattletimes.com)

Seattle Seahawks starting CB Kelly Jennings is expected to be challenged by CB Kevin Hobbs in training camp, according to PFW. Originally signed by Seattle as an undrafted free agent in 2006, only to be released after training camp, Hobbs was re-signed last May and ended up splitting time between the active roster and the practice squad. In this year's minicamps and OTAs, however, he was singled out as the team's most improved defender. Said one longtime team insider: "He really looked good and made a lot of plays. I don't see him beating out Jennings, but I definitely see him possibly grabbing the 'dime' role from CB Josh Wilson, whose best plays have come from having to use his athleticism to recover from all the plays he keeps missing."

(ffmastermind.com)

Coach Mike Holmgren indicated at the Seahawks' last minicamp that CB Kelly Jennings is no lock to return as a starter in 2008.
"Marcus Trufant will be one corner," Holmgren said. "Then we have a bunch of guys battling that are playing very well at the other corner." 2007 second-round pick Josh Wilson and Jordan Babineaux may be threats to Jennings.

(rotoworld.com)

Jennings' return is questionable.






(blogs.thenewstribune.com)

Stats*

Penetrations: 1
Broken Tackles: 4
Good Coverage: 17
Blown Coverage: 8
*Includes all games minus Week 10, Divisional Round and the second half of Week 3 and the first half of week 1.

Highlights

9/16/07
Kelly Jennings performed admirably despite a terrible mismatch. He recorded three good coverages and just one blown coverage. The blown coverage? When Larry Fitzgerald jumped over him.

12/16/07
Jennings had a fine first quarter, including coverage that broke up a touchdown reception and a tackle of -1 yards against Steve Smith. The tackle was especially heartening.

1/05/08
Jennings was lined across from Reche Caldwell for most of the game. Caldwell caught one pass for 7 yards, and was the target of 3 incompletes. Caldwell isn't any great shakes, but Jennings is good. Real good.

Lowlights

10/7/07
Jennings had a couple rough stretches and despite my theorizing otherwise, it's not man but zone coverage that gives him troubles. His worst showing was on the third play of the Steelers first drive of the second quarter backed up within their own ten, third and 3. The Steelers have two receivers bunched left and Seattle is in a 4-2 nickel. Jordan Babineaux and Kelly Jennings are in zone coverage left. Babs interior, Jennings ext--oh wait, no he seems to be playing the interior too. Willie Reid catches the ball in the flat, Jennings breaks on the receiver (at this point the first down is already conceded) throws an awful tackle that slides right off the 186 pound Reid before Reid breaks it for a 25 yard gain. The worst infraction is the blown coverage as once Jennings was near Reid the first down was all but conceded anyway, but the tackle is exactly the type you fear from a slight player like Jennings, not really bad form, just wimpy. Reid barely broke stride slipping past him. Jennings has played well all year and has been a real step up in man coverage from Kelly Herndon, but what he showed on this play isn't something tackle drills can overcome.

10/14/07
Fifth play, third New Orleans drive. First and ten, the Hawks are in a base package w/ Deon Grant playing up. At the snap the Saints left side creates a big mess, Baraka Atkins leveled, Grant flies in, gets picked by Karney and only Kelly Jennings stands between Bush and the sidelines. Jennings takes a miserable angle, again somehow inexplicably underestimating Bush's speed, breaks outside containment and watches Bush dash past him for 22 along the left sideline. It's the first, and hopefully last, time I have pined for Kelly Herndon.
Back to business. Tru played decent. Grant was a non-entity. Russell is the reactionary fling following Ken Hamlin: Where Hamlin lived in the first fifteen yards, Russell rarely strays from 20 yards past the line of scrimmage. It's not the worst thing a safety can do, but it does leave a lot of middle-deep post routes open. Oh, and Jennings played awful. Here's a three play stretch that best summed up Seattle's secondary:

• Seventh play, Saints final drive of the half. It's 1st and 4 into the end zone. Seattle rushes seven, Brees feeling nary a whisper of pressure tosses the ball to Marques Colston. Jennings blows coverage, but luckily Colston drops the pass.
• Eighth play, Seattle in goal line formation. Hawks blitz on play action, Grant gets penetration, Brees rushes a pass to Eric Johnson. Trufant absolutely mugs Johnson, but doesn't get called.
• Ninth play, Hawks again in goal line. Hawks blitz, Brees tosses it out to Colston, Jennings blows coverage, this time Colston hauls in the touchdown reception. Fantasy owners rejoice. I attempt to bite off my own fist.

Outlook
The quiet corner. Noteworthy for being not-noteworthy. Jennings is one of Tim Ruskell's less recognized success stories. Second year corners are supposed to be inconsistent and a little toasty around the edges. Excepting his showing against the Saints, Jennings was a rock. A pillar of basalt, if you will, because if such a thing is possible, Jennings is a thin 178. Jennings open field tackling is, yes, wimpy. Not technically incorrect, but a bit like a superball colliding with an asteroid. The Jennings, Russell, Tapp troika oversaw Seattle's 20th ranked rush D on runs a round left end. A weakness that came to fore facing Green Bay. As hopeless as Jennings looked at times in 2007, I'd put better odds on Jennings filling out enough to put the oomph in his good angles and technically sound tackles than a larger defender acquiring new skills. Jennings is a precocious cover corner. Should he develop some ball skills, watch out. Too good to be so unappreciated.

(fieldgulls.com)