TAMPA, Fla. -- The Tampa Bay Buccaneers waived three players Sunday following their preseason-opening loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, including former Navy cornerback Cameron Kinley, who was given a special exemption by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to delay his service to the Navy so he could attend Buccaneers training camp.
The exemption was a reversal from when acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas W. Harker declined to forward Kinley's request to the Secretary of Defense after Kinley had already attended rookie camp with the Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent.
Florida Senator Marco Rubio caught wind of Kinley's plight and wrote a letter on his behalf to President Joe Biden requesting Kinley receive an exemption that would allow him to postpone his Navy service and play in the NFL.