I'll never forget seeing Javon Kinlaw's father, George, fall to the floor when he heard his son's name called in the 2020 NFL Draft. I knew right then and there the 49ers were getting, at the very least, an emotionally invested player in Kinlaw. So I wasn't surprised to see the unfiltered emotions Kinlaw exhibited in his "interview" with Grant Cohn of Sports Illustrated.
Let's be clear, Javon Kinlaw has every right to defend his reputation and confront anyone who is constructing a counter-productive narrative of him. That not only goes for Kinlaw, that goes for any professional athlete in my opinion. Kinlaw's 'self-defense' plays right into something that I once heard, "a lie that goes uncorrected will soon be accepted as the truth." If Kinlaw allows people to control the conversation about him, it is very likely to have financial consequences for him and his family. So for Cohn and any other sports journalist who dares push out negativity on players, let's just say if you mess with the bull, you are liable to get the horns. With that being said, I want to take a moment to look beyond the incident and into what evoked the passionate defense from Kinlaw.
"I got kids bro" - I didn't take the liberty to count how many times Kinlaw reiterated this point to Cohn, however, I could tell from the way in which he said this, that Kinlaw was doing more than simply stating the fact that he is a father. Kinlaw's passionate rebuttal may have been rooted in his own childhood obstacles and a parent's natural instincts to protect their children. Kinlaw is likely going out of the way to guard himself to shield his kids from the negativity that they are liable to hear about their father. Something that, unfortunately, wasn't done for him during his childhood. A childhood that was marked by homelessness, behavior and anger management issues, and academic struggles due to the instability of his home life. Things were so bad that Kinlaw would spend eight hours a day on the DC Metro trains because it was warmer than the house he lived in that had no electricity. Throughout his upbringing, Kinlaw bounced back and forth between the Washington DC area (with his mom) and South Carolina (with his dad) until he entered high school. Typically the term "bounced around" is used figuratively. However, in Kinlaw's case it applies literally, as both his mother and father were largely unable to find permanent housing and Kinlaw's social and emotional behavior suffered because of it.
When Kinlaw's father's struggles with alcoholism are added to this mix, one should be able to understand Kinlaw's frustration with Cohn. Kinlaw is a survivor. Simply put, he has overcome too much to be considered anything else. I believe this is what he meant with the statement "I'm a whole grown man out here." Again, Kinlaw was right, facing situations that he has, would force anyone to grow up fast. By all accounts, Kinlaw has done everything right both on and off the field from the moment he has been drafted by the 49ers.
In my opinion, amid the profanity-laced exchange between Cohn and Kinlaw, Kinlaw offered some insight into how he wants to be viewed. Kinlaw stated that if he has a bad season this year, "you can rail me all you want." I found that to be very mature and honest. Kinlaw is telling the world, "if I am healthy and don't play well then I deserve all the criticism that comes with not getting the job done." Hearing an athlete willing to take that level of accountability is refreshing, especially when today's athletes are largely viewed as not having the same mental makeup as their predecessors. For all intents and purposes, Kinlaw checks that old-school box in terms of taking responsibility for what he puts on film. That is why I understand his frustrations with being belittled by Cohn.
In the past, Cohn has made the outrageous claims that Kinlaw has "an 80-year-old knee" and other retorts that have created a perception around Kinlaw that he may be damaged goods. Cohn has made statements that the 49ers should have drafted Tristan Wirfs and even insinuated things that could make his audience begin to conjure up the idea that Kinlaw is a bust. Personally, I strongly disagree with anyone who feels that way about Kinlaw. Thus far in his career, Kinlaw has dealt with the adversity of injuries but has shown the potential to be dominant when he plays. But I digress, the more significant point is that players must do whatever is in their power to control their narratives.
To their credit, the athletes of this generation have done a great job at creating the platforms such as The Uninterrupted and The Players Tribune to put out content from their perspective. Even with these types of platforms, there is a pecking order and we typically get stories from more notable athletes. For players like Kinlaw, the reporting done primarily to a team's fan base, whether justly or unjustly, goes a long way in developing the perception fans typically hold of a player. And thus the seed of Kinlaws frustration, Cohn has created an unfair assessment of Kinlaw. So whether you agreed with his methodology or not, Kinlaw's actions were his way of defending his reputation.
A reputation that Kinlaw has persevered through a mountain of a past to defend. Javon Kinlaw is in a contract year and his play this season will go a very long way in determining his NFL future. That is on a player level, on a personal level Kinlaw knows that he could single-handedly create generational wealth for his children and change the trajectory of his family forever. Kinlaw is undoubtedly feeling the pressure of that and made it clear that he doesn't plan to allow Cohn or anyone else to sully that opportunity. Kinlaw wants his play to speak for him and I can't blame him. If I were a betting man, I would put my money on Kinlaw dominating this season because up to this point his life can be summed up by this quote from Booker T. Washington: "Success is to be measured not so much by the position one has reached in life, but by the obstacles which he has overcome."
Knowing what Kinlaw has overcome, playing football will be the easy part.