FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — If you’re looking for a major Eagles training camp surprise, look no farther than Darian Kinnard, a 24-year-old offensive lineman who went to the same high school as Jonathan Gannon and is related to Dolly Parton.
Darian who?
Kinnard played at Kentucky — mainly offensive tackle but some guard — and in 2021 received the Jacobs Blocking Trophy given annually to the top offensive lineman in the SEC.
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He was widely projected as a likely 2nd- or 3rd-round pick in the 2022 draft but wound up going early in the fifth round to Andy Reid and the Chiefs. He won two Super Bowl rings during his stay in Kansas City but only played in one regular-season game — six special teams snaps against the Raiders in October of 2022.
Because he finished last year on the Chiefs’ practice squad, he became a free agent after the Super Bowl, and it didn’t take long for Howie Roseman to snap him up.
Kinnard, 6-foot-5, 320 pounds, signed with the Eagles on Feb. 20 and has quietly elbowed his way into the crowded mix along the interior o-line.
The Eagles will keep nine or 10 offensive linemen, and with Jason Kelce retired, Jack Driscoll now with the Dolphins and Sua Opeta with the Buccaneers — and out for the year with a torn ACL — there are some openings on the 53-man roster.
The backup guard competition includes whoever loses between Mekhi Becton and Tyler Steen, as well as Matt Hennessy, Dylan McMahon, Trevor Keegan, Max Scharping, Nick Gates and Kinnard. It’s a crowded field, but Kinnard has been working his way up the ladder and has been taking 2nd-team reps at both guard spots as well as right tackle.
“Really made a step up this past week,” Johnson said after practice with the Patriots Tuesday on the grass fields outside Gillette Stadium. “He’s played primarily guard in the league, was a tackle at Kentucky, but after a couple practices I got in his ear and told him, ‘Hey man, take one kick and settle.’
“He’s so big and athletic. Really turned it on. If there’s a guy who’s increasingly rising, it’s D.K.”
In addition to projected starters Jordan Mailata, Landon Dickerson, Cam Jurgens, Becton and Johnson, Steen and Keegan are probably roster locks. That leaves two or three spots for backups.
With the starters out for the preseason opener in Baltimore, Kinnard started at right tackle and wound up playing all 83 snaps – nobody else on the team played more than 44 snaps.
“He was dog-ass tired,” Johnson said. “But as Stout says, it’s part of the game, and you’ve got to go earn it. But really impressed with how he’s battling.”
The coaches obviously wanted to see as much of Kinnard as possible, which is a good sign for the Cleveland native. He has that guard-tackle versatility that o-line coach Jeff Stoutland demands from his backups, and if final cuts were today, Kinnard would have a good, honest chance of snagging a spot on the 53-man roster.
If things work out for Kinnard and he becomes a player here, it would be a small victory for Howie Roseman over his former scout, Chiefs general manager Brett Veach, architect of the Chiefs’ three Super Bowl championship teams.
What about Dolly Parton? Kinnard’s aunt and Parton are first cousins. But he's never met the Jolene singer.
