ESPN’s McShay on Javon Kinlaw: ‘If God was going to make a defensive lineman ...’
Find yourself someone who appreciates you like ESPN’s Todd McShay appreciated Javon Kinlaw’s two days at the Senior Bowl.
As McShay went over his latest mock draft on SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt, he lavished more praise of the former Gamecocks star defensive lineman. Most notably, McShay put a number on how much more Kinlaw might make after that, a minimum of $12 million.
“If God was going to make a defensive lineman, it’s this guy,” McShay said. “It took 48 hours for him to just show every NFL GM, every NFL head coach, ‘I’m the guy.’ Someone was smart enough, probably his agent, to say, ‘You did a good enough job, bud. You can leave the Senior Bowl.’ He was done in 48 hours and he made probably $12, $15 million.”
McShay has Kinlaw going No. 9 to Jacksonville.
Van Pelt brought up Kinlaw by saying: “For people that don’t know his story, read it. It will help explain maybe the fury that he plays with.”
Kinlaw came up in dire poverty in Washington D.C. and spoke about it at the Senior Bowl. He moved to South Carolina, played at Goose Creek High School and then had to spend a year in junior college before finally making it to Columbia.
Kinlaw dropped a serious amount of weight to become a starter his first year on campus. He was productive his second year, but not the force some expected as a hip injury slowed him. He eschewed the NFL after that year.
And as a senior he became that force. He was a first-team All-American, piling up 35 tackles, six sacks, four QB hurries and a pair of pass break-ups. He regularly commanded double teams and at times simply wrecked offensive game plans.
The NFL draft runs April 23-25 in Las Vegas.
