Javon Kinlaw A Favorite To Win Defensive Rookie Of The Year
The bar has being set pretty high for former South Carolina Gamecock Javon Kinlaw in terms of expectations this year.
The San Francisco 49ers first-round draft pick was named one of CBS Sports’ top five players with a chance to win Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Kinlaw entered the draft as one of the best pass rushers in the 2020 class and CBS Sports’ Chris Trapasso said that’s what led him to put the defensive lineman in the upper echelon of his top-10 list.
“Kinlaw was my top interior defensive line prospect in this class, yes, ahead of Derrick Brown,” Trapasso said in the article. “The main reason for that? Pass-rush capability. Kinlaw and Brown are almost identically sized, but Kinlaw was simply a much more effective pass-rusher in college. Per PFF, in 2019, the South Carolina star had an 18.1% pass-rush win rate, second in the 2020 class among interior defensive linemen. Brown’s was 13.7%.”
Kinlaw put scouts on notice after recording 35 tackles and 6 six during his senior year and being named an Associated Press All-American.
His draft profile did say that Kinlaw needs to work on his technique as well as his overall consistency, but he possess the raw tools and skill set worthy of the 49ers using a first round pick.
Kinlaw’s San Francisco teammate Nick Bosa won the award last year and if Kinlaw were to win it this upcoming season it would be the first time in NFL history a team had back-to-back Defensive Rookie of the Year recipients.