Is Javon Kinlaw Trending Toward an Injury Prone Path?

Javon Kinlaw has another injury.... again.

Javon Kinlaw has another injury.... again.

This is starting to be redundant with Kinlaw. For a guy who is only 23 years of age, it is starting to become a legitimate concern. It isn’t his knee that has caused him a problem for once. This time it is his shoulder.

“Yes, Javon hurt his shoulder last week,” said Kyle Shanahan. “He'll be week to week. I doubt he'll be out there this week. It wasn't a setback. It was a new thing.”

The shoulder might be a “new thing,” but missing time due to an injury is not new for Kinlaw. Having his name mentioned for missing time or being limited is starting to become the new norm, which is a problem. It isn’t going to start becoming a red flag until he misses games, but this is definitely something to be concerned.

Is Kinlaw trending toward an injury prone path?

I’d say he already is on it.

It is hard to forget that he has knee tendinitis. That was the top concerning unattractive feature with him in the lead up to the 2020 NFL Draft. The 49ers knew what they were getting with Kinlaw, but perhaps they underestimated the maintenance for it.

Prior to his shoulder, Kinlaw underwent a procedure to reduce the swelling in his knee in July. Plus, he missed the final two games of his rookie season with a knee injury that he sustained in the Cowboys game, which he ended up getting surgery for. Kinlaw once took to Instagram to inform everyone “I have no injury,” which at the time maybe he was right. But what Kinlaw really should’ve wrote is “I have no injury... for now.” 

Let’s face it, the guy is practically going to be fighting knee issues for his career. Not to mention that it seems like he gets banged up fairly easily. For a guy who steps into DeForest Buckner’s spot who was consistently healthy, this is not a good look. Kinlaw is never going to reach his potential until he can find a stroke of luck with his health. It’s just the sad reality of the situation. Maybe in the future Kinlaw can sustain health and play through his knee complications, but so far the patterns suggest otherwise. 

Thinking ahead here, you can bet your bottom dollar that if this continues into his fifth-year option decision that the 49ers will not pick that up or even look to extend him after that. It may seem too soon to start being concerned, but this is actually the right time to start looking closely at Kinlaw. 

He might never be a guy who can reach his full potential due to injuries.