Jon Jansen may be the NFL’s best active offensive tackle never to reach the Pro Bowl. The right anchor of the Washington Redskins line has won his share of confrontations with New York Giants 7-time Pro Bowler Michael Strahan. He was the plow for three runners that combined for six 1,100-yard plus seasons, including three for more than 1,400. Jansen was the de facto left tackle when protecting lefty quarterback Mark Brunell’s blind side for 2 1/2 seasons.
So what’s it going to take for Jansen to do the hula in February with the game’s top players? Maybe a playoff season that generates publicity for the offensive line. Perhaps another breakout season by Clinton Portis, though Jansen played most of the 2005 with two broken thumbs when the former rushed for a team-record 1,516 yards.
“I want to be in a Pro Bowl. To do that you have to beat the guys like Michael Strahan and Jevon Kearse,” Jansen said. “I’m in year nine and still trying to prove myself. [Making the Pro Bowl] is political, which is what makes it frustrating. The most important thing for a right tackle or guard is you have to be on a winning team. We had a great line last year, but we didn’t win so you don’t get those things.”
After seven seasons of employing two of the league’s better young tackles, the Redskins are starting to age on the outside. Chris Samuels turned 30 just days before suffering a knee injury on Monday that will cost him most of the preseason. Jansen, 31, is the senior Redskin on the roster in consecutive service. He was was a second-round steal in 1999 with part of the picks gained from the Ricky Williams deal when some of the rookies weren’t yet teenagers.
“You talk to guys who are 21-years old who were only 12-years old when I got in the NFL,” Jansen said. “Some guys say they remember when I got drafted or watched me at Michigan. It doesn’t seem possible.”
Jansen has avoided burnout by living 30 minutes from Redskin Park near the West Virginia border. An offseason home in his native Michigan helps, too. Instead of the headline-grabbing lifestyle of some pro athletes, Jansen’s often found with his two young daughters Lucy and Ruby plus his hounds Roscoe and Rocket.
“I can separate what I do at work with what I have at home,” Jansen said. “There are times when it’s hard. My wife does a great job of listening to me for awhile and then say, ‘Let’s put it behind us and be a family.’”
Playing until age 40 is Jansen’s goal. He appeared indestructable after playing 50 games in college and another 80 with the Redskins before missing 2004 with a ruptured Achilles heel. He played 30 more until missing one late last season with a bad calf.
Entering his first training camp in three years healthy, Jansen has shed a few pounds and practices without worry. It’s making a difference. Maybe enough to finally gain overdue recognition.
“This is the best shape I’ve been in in six, seven years,” he said. “I don’t feel old.”
Rick Snider has covered local sports since 1978. Contact him at [email protected].
