The New York Giants selected Alabama safety Xavier McKinney with the 36th pick in the 2020 NFL Draft on Friday night.
McKinney was the first defensive player off the board in Round 2 after Cincinnati took Clemson wide receiver at No. 33 and Indianapolis grabbed USC wideout Michael Pittman, Jr. at No. 34. The Detroit Lions, drafting 35th, selected Georgia running back D’andre Swift.
Here are five things to know about McKinney:
McKinney dominated in 2019
McKinney started all 13 games for the Tide in 2019 and was named a third-team Associated Press All-American and was a first-team All-SEC selection. He led the Tide’s defense with 95 tackles (5.5 for loss with three sacks) and was among the national leaders with four forced fumbles. In addition, he intercepted three passes, had five pass breakups and blocked a kick.
Joining a history of Tide in New York
McKinney (6’0″, 201) is the 22nd player form Alabama the Giants have drafted in their history and the third Alabama player they’ve drafted in second round in the last five years (Landon Collins 2015, Dalvin Tomlinson 2017).
Bowl Game MVP
McKinney was named the defensive MVP of the 2020 Orange Bowl when the Tide rolled over Kyler Murray and Oklahoma, 45-34. McKinney had five tackles and four passed defensed.
Versatility is his middle name
According to Pro Football Focus, McKinney “played everywhere for the Crimson tide — 323 snaps in the box, 227 in the slot and 271 deep.”
Also from PFF:
McKinney allowed just 50% of the passes into his coverage to be completed as a sophomore, getting his hands on nine of 52 such plays, though he was a little more lenient as a junior when he gave up three touchdowns and 353 yards on the 59 total passes into his primary coverage. However, he still came out of the scrum with an 89.2 coverage grade, adding 32 stops and 10 total pressures.
