Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Cameron Kinley seeks help from President Biden

After the US Navy denied Cameron Kinley’s request to delay his service so he can continue to pursue his NFL dreams with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Kinley is appealing to the highest office in the land and is now asking President Biden for help.

Throughout rookie minicamp, it was looking like the Buccaneers found a diamond in the rough in Kinley, the undrafted defensive back out of Navy. Kinley and fourth-round pick Jaelon Darden, a receiver out of North Texas were two rookies that were turning heads.

Then, the Naval Academy contacted Kinley and denied his request to delay his mandatory service. Just like that, it seemed like Kinley’s NFL aspirations had to take a rain check. That doesn’t mean Kinley is going to go down without a fight, however.

In a recent interview with TMZ Sports, Kinley asked for help from the President saying:

"“President Biden, first off thank you for all that you do. I have a lot of respect for you, for anybody who’s willing to lead our country.“… I’m just asking that you consider helping me with this situation that I’m currently in and allowing me to delay my commission so that I can go play in the NFL and then serve my commitment whenever I get done playing.”"

Per ESPN, Kinley’s agency, Divine Sports and Entertainment, said no reason has been given as to why Kinley is not being allowed to appeal the Navy’s decision. Kinley would hardly be the first graduate of the armed forces academies to have his service deferred to peruse NFL careers, and he certainly wouldn’t be the last.

Kinley expressed his belief that he could be an asset to the U.S. Military if it allows him to pursue an NFL career, saying: “There are so many different ways that I can recruit. There are so many different ways that I can bring positivity to our fighting forces to allow young men and women to see the opportunity that you have and to see that dreams can become reality.”

Kinley was not only the team captain at Navy, but he was also the class president. On the field, Kinley can be a nice fit in the Buccaneers’ defense should he be allowed to try and make the team. He is a big, physical corner at 6-feet-2 inches and 204 pounds, which is a great size for an NFL corner.

In his four-year college career at Navy, Kinley intercepted one pass and broke up six. He also added on 88 tackles (3.5 for a loss) and a sack. Those aren’t exactly eye-popping stats, but with cornerbacks sometimes quiet stats speak the loudest. They usually have to do with not being targeted as much, as was the case with Kinley.

In order for any of this to matter though, it would appear Cameron Kinley will first need help from the leader of the free world in Joe Biden, a noted fan of the Philadelphia Eagles, for whatever that’s worth.