A crucial component to any team’s development in the NFL, especially when rebuilding, is getting the most out of the assets you have and turning them into draft selections when possible to build for the future. While the New Orleans Saints certainly took quite a long time to figure that out, in recent years, they have been able to move off a couple of key pieces, getting some compensation in return for doing so.
Trading away Sean Payton was the start of it all, sending him to the Denver Broncos in return for a 2023 first-round pick and a 2024 second-round selection. These two picks turned into Bryan Bresee and Kool-Aid McKinstry, respectively, the latter of whom has rapidly developed into a borderline cornerback No. 1 for New Orleans.
Zach Tantillo of Pro Football Focus recently put out his “secret superstars” list for each NFL team, essentially players who may have gone under the radar nationally who made a significant impact on their respective teams. For the Saints, that player was McKinstry:
McKinstry logged a 71.4 PFF coverage grade, the highest mark on the Saints’ defense. His play down the stretch was borderline elite, but with the Saints out of playoff contention, his performance largely fell on deaf ears. From Weeks 10 through 18, McKinstry posted an 83.8 PFF coverage grade, the third-highest figure in the NFL, as the Saints finished the season 5-3.
While McKinstry may not exactly be a “secret” anymore, he certainly was underrated both last year and early this year, which comes with the territory of being on a team going through a rebuild. When it comes to players being underappreciated, he certainly is the first that comes to mind with New Orleans, though, and his eye-test is just as good as his statistics, maybe better.
This is a perfect time for him to up the ante as well, as fellow young cornerback Alontae Taylor is set to hit the market, and may end up drawing a pretty hefty price tag given his success. Having McKinstry and Quincy Riley to work around is a great start; now the focus will be on adding another slot cornerback to fill out the room, pending whether or not Taylor leaves.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Why PFF believes Kool-Aid McKinstry was Saints’ ‘Secret Superstar’