FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Javon Kinlaw couldn't get the words out. The memories were flooding his mind.
The New York Jets defensive lineman was in the middle of talking about his journey — through football and life — when his eyes welled up and he needed to pause at the podium.
“I've been through a lot, you know,” Kinlaw said Monday, wiping away tears. “That's all I can really say, but I never gave up. A lot of people would've gave up. But I never gave up.”
The 26-year-old Kinlaw is entering his first season with the Jets, who signed him to a one-year, $7.25 million deal in March. He spent his first four NFL seasons with San Francisco after being the 14th overall pick out of South Carolina in 2020.
But he hasn't yet lived up to his lofty draft status.
“I always dreamed of being a top guy,” Kinlaw said. “I still do. I’m super hungry for it.”
After getting 1 1/2 sacks as a rookie, Kinlaw was limited to 10 games over the next two years because of injuries that landed him on injured reserve both seasons. He didn't get another sack until last year, when he had a career-best 3 1/2 while playing 17 games for the first time.
The 49ers declined the fifth-year option on his rookie deal, making him a free agent this past offseason. And the Jets jumped at the chance to add Kinlaw to their already formidable defensive line.
“J.K., he’s had kind of bad luck in the first couple years with regards to injury, and last year was the first year that he was able to get it all through,” said coach Robert Saleh, who was San Francisco's defensive coordinator in Kinlaw's rookie season.
“He’s put in a lot of work this offseason and the man is built the right way,” Saleh added. “He’s got a tremendous mindset and he wants to be great, like all of them. So I know he’s going to take advantage of every opportunity he gets here.”
Kinlaw is also sure of that. He has come too far not to.
As a youngster, Kinlaw was homeless for some time in the Washington, D.C., area with his mother and two brothers, never knowing where he'd sleep — or eat — next. Sometimes it was a friend's basement. Other times, it was wherever they could get warm. And often, they didn't have any electricity or running water.
He didn't play football until he moved to South Carolina, where his father lived. And Kinlaw told ESPN before he was drafted that there were struggles there, too — in school with grades; off the field with family issues — and he dropped out of high school as a senior.
Kinlaw got back on track by earning his GED certificate at Jones County Junior College in Mississippi and getting an associate degree before transferring to South Carolina. There, he fell in love with football and became one of the country's best defensive linemen.
It has been a long, emotional road that has brought him here — to the Jets, with another opportunity to make his family, and himself, proud.
“I’ve had a lot of dark days and just to be able to touch that grass is a big blessing, man,” Kinlaw said. “You know, I’ve been through a lot, bro, for real.”
The 6-foot-5, 330-pound D-lineman will team with the likes of Quinnen Williams, Haason Reddick, Solomon Thomas, Leki Fotu, Micheal Clemons and Will McDonald to give New York a massive defensive front.
“I think I fit in very well,” Kinlaw said. “Just another power guy. I think I’m very explosive, as well. Just as as much as everybody else that’s on the D-line. I just can’t wait to get to battle with these guys.”
Kinlaw said he put on 35 pounds of lean muscle since the end of last season, with the goal being able to feel “more sturdy” while taking on double-teams of blockers.
To do that so quickly, Kinlaw said he worked out — and ate. And ate.
“Well, my girl, she would make me like nine chicken eggs in the morning,” he said. “A whole avocado, handful of spinach. Lunch time, I’d eat, like, six chicken breasts. A little salad on the side. And then (dinner), I probably eat a little pasta, like a pound of ground beef, but then a few noodles mixed in.
"I did it every day and it paid off. I’m still eating that same way right now, but a little less, though. I don’t want to be too bulky.”
But he's plenty imposing.
“He’s a ginormous human being,” Saleh said of Kinlaw when asked to compare him now to when he was a rookie. “But his mindset’s the same. Knock on wood for good health. He’s a dominant football player and he’s got an opportunity to prove it.”
And that's exactly what he intends to do.
“Even though I’ve been through a lot, I’ve always worked super hard,” Kinlaw said. "The chips, they fell where they may. But I never gave up on myself."
