SANTA CLARA — Since joining the 49ers’ staff in 2019, defensive line coach Kris Kocurek has taken on his share of reclamation projects.
There have been a handful of castoffs from other organizations who have thrived with the 49ers and parlayed their success under Kocurek into sizable contracts elsewhere.
And then there’s the case of defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw.
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“Since I’ve been here, (it’s) one of the more gratifying things just because of the work I know he’s put into this thing,” Kocurek said of the adversity Kinlaw has battled to overcome.
Kinlaw entered the NFL with unfair expectations, as the player chosen at No. 14 overall in the 2020 NFL Draft after the club traded away DeForest Buckner.
He missed 26 regular-season games in his first three seasons due to knee issues, including an ACL reconstruction in November of 2021. And even when he suited up for games, he rarely appeared to be healthy.
In addition to all the games he sat out, Kinlaw never had a chance to get much better because he was sidelined for countless practices, too.
San Francisco 49ers
“No one understands the amount of work that he’s put in behind closed doors," Kocurek said. "I just can’t say that enough.”
Kinlaw logged daily hours at the team's workout facility in the offseason to give himself the best opportunity to get on the field and stay on the field.
He held up physically during the offseason program to lay the groundwork for the grind of training camp.
“And now that we’ve started camp, he’s been out there every single day, taking his full allotment of reps, and now you’re starting to really see the player he can become,” Kocurek said.
“You see his lower body start to come alive: The power, the explosion and the lateral (movement) and making plays down the line of scrimmage.”
This offseason, the 49ers declined to pick up Kinlaw's fifth-year option for the 2024 season. He is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent after this season.
And after the club signed veteran free-agent Javon Hargrave to a lucrative contract, Kinlaw figures into the 49ers' mix as a key part of the team’s defensive line rotation.
It is a role in which Kocurek believes Kinlaw can thrive.
“The arrow is pointing up,” Kocurek said. “We just got to continuously get a little better.
“It’s been one of the more gratifying things since I’ve been here to see the amount of work he’s done and see it come to fruition. It’s very gratifying as a coach to me.”