With The First Pick
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2020 NFL Draft: Xavier McKinney the jack of all trades ready to be king

By Jeremiah Bogan

TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA - OCTOBER 19: Xavier McKinney #15 of the Alabama Crimson Tide tackles Tim Jordan #9 of the Tennessee Volunteers at Bryant-Denny Stadium on October 19, 2019 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA - OCTOBER 19: Xavier McKinney #15 of the Alabama Crimson Tide tackles Tim Jordan #9 of the Tennessee Volunteers at Bryant-Denny Stadium on October 19, 2019 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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ATLANTA, GA – DECEMBER 01: Xavier McKinney #15 of the Alabama Crimson Tide reacts after defeating the Georgia Bulldogs 35-28 in the 2018 SEC Championship Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 1, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA – DECEMBER 01: Xavier McKinney #15 of the Alabama Crimson Tide reacts after defeating the Georgia Bulldogs 35-28 in the 2018 SEC Championship Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 1, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images) /

McKinney’s Weaknesses

McKinney is not an elite athlete or overly explosive which is why he has to continue to play a step ahead with his exceptional instincts. He does not have the range to be used as a one high safety who can cover from the middle of the field consistently.

The safety struggles to play man out of the slot against slot receivers, showing some stall when being forced to flip his hips and run with guys. McKinney will end up in the trail position too often due to squatting too hard on routes in man coverage instead of using his back pedal to not allow his cushion to be broken so quickly.

The safety seems to play a lot faster against the run than he does in coverage and displays more athleticism as a run defender. It would be nice to see that athleticism translate to coverage more consistently for McKinney, but overall, the Alabama 2020 NFL Draft prospect is a well-rounded as a player but doesn’t have an elite physical trait.

It has been hard to fill out 200 words on McKinney’s weaknesses, because they are few and far between. It will be exciting to see how he tests in Indianapolis at the NFL Scouting Combine in March as he preps for the 2020 NFL Draft.

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