Janoris Jenkins: Admitting Mistakes Is First Step for Star Cornerback

They say admitting your mistakes is the first step toward changing.

Janoris Jenkins' off-the-field troubles when he was at Florida have made the talented cornerback the ultimate boom-or-bust prospect headed into the 2012 NFL draft.

And he's addressed his mistakes without any hesitation.

After team meetings at the combine, Jenkins said Sunday, via the Palm Beach Post:

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"I was honest, straightforward, told them I did it. I admitted to everything. I came in here to show them I'm not a bad kid, I've made a few mistakes and I learned from them."

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It wasn't the first time Jenkins talked of his past mistakes.

At the Senior Bowl last month, Jenkins said:

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"I was just being a college kid, partying, having fun, doing things that aren't really acceptable. It showed me that in order to get where I wanted to go, I've got to eliminate some things and some people."

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Jenkins failed a drug test and had three separate arrests while with the Gators. He got into a bar fight in May 2009 and was arrested for marijuana possession twice in a three-month span in 2011.

As a result, coach Will Muschamp kicked Jenkins off the team in April 2011. He was forced to finish his collegiate career at North Alabama, a Division II school.

Jenkins has all the tools you want in a cornerback at the next level: speed, quickness, great man-to-man coverage skills, the ability to change direction on a dime and good leaping ability.

But for him to become a star in the NFL, or even a solid player, he can't go on making stupid mistakes. There is no room for that in the NFL, especially when you're a rookie trying to make a name for himself.

Jenkins has admitted and acknowledged his mistakes in the past two months. That's the first step.

But the real test begins when he's drafted.

Will he learn from his past, or is his past a sign of more problems to come?