Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB Alabama: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

McKinstry was a five-star recruit from Pinson Valley High School in Pinson, Ala. in the class of 2021

The Alabama Crimson Tide failed to produce a first round defensive back in both of the last two years. Cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry will end that drought in the 2024 NFL Draft. He earned a late first round evaluation in summer scouting.

Visit my Twitter account @Sam_Teets33 for more opinions on prospects, clips, and the latest football content.

Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB Alabama: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Junior outside cornerback from Birmingham, Ala.

Background: McKinstry was a five-star recruit from Pinson Valley High School in Pinson, Ala. in the class of 2021. He was the No. 18 recruit according to 247Sports, No. 28 for Rivals, and No. 17 for On3.com. ESPN ranked him 40th in the nation (four-star) with an 87 grade out of 100. As a sophomore in 2018, McKinstry earned Alabama Class 6A First Team All-State honors. He was the AL.com Birmingham Male Athlete of the Year for the 2019-2020 season. McKinstry led Pinson Valley to an Alabama 6A State Championship in 2020 as a two-way player. He totaled two interceptions, 12 passes defensed, and 22 tackles as a senior to accompany 45 receptions, 706 yards, and 11 touchdowns. McKinstry was the MVP of the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Game. He was the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s Mr. Football and the MaxPreps Alabama High School Football Player of the Year in 2020. McKinstry also won multiple state championships with the basketball team at Pinson Valley. According to MaxPreps, he averaged 15 points, five rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 2.7 steals per game as a junior. McKinstry averaged 14 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.6 steals per game as a senior.

Injuries & Off-Field: Limited in 2022 spring practice by injury

Awards: 2021 Freshman All-SEC Team, 2022 First Team All-SEC (Cornerback), 2022 Second Team All-SEC (Return Specialist), 2022 Third Team All-American (Associated Press), 2022 Second Team All-American (AFCA, The Sporting News), 2022 First Team All-American (PFF)

Pros: Special teams experience on the kick coverage, punt return, and field goal block units, returned punts for Alabama in 2022, return skills, patient footwork to mirror releases, erases outside releases, compresses outside releases along the boundary, physical throughout the route, speed to carry receivers vertically, excellent linear athlete with above-average speed, recovery burst, sticky soft shoe press-man corner who allows minimal separation at the top of the stem, quickly decelerates to match and shut down comeback routes, quick to drive on underneath routes in zone, gets his hand in at the last second to break up passes, moments of being a willing run defender vs. Texas (2022), flashes of big time tackles

Cons: Committed four penalties in 2022, enters 2023 with one year of high-level ball production, high-cut frame, arm length is acceptable but not elite, arm length limits ability to play the ball from behind the receiver, not twitchy, sits high in his stance, some early false steps by the line, doesn’t jam at the line of scrimmage often, twitchy route runners test him, switch releases lead to confusion (LSU), allows himself to be turned around too often, lax closing on crossing routes, some lapses in technique when he thinks the QB has moved past his man, looks disengaged on some plays, receivers create separation with subtle push offs, allows separation on double moves, instances of taking too long to decelerate and flip hips on comeback routes, gets grabby on comeback routes, grabby when he feels threatened on nuanced routes, will get flagged for holding receiver’s jersey on crossers, doesn’t play big at the catch point, not a playmaker from zone, block defeat skills, motor is inconsistent in run defense, not consistent coming downhill to help against the run, grab and drag tackler

Overview: McKinstry has special teams experience on the kick coverage, punt return, and field goal block units. He is an explosive and dynamic punt returner with the linear speed to take returns to the house. As a cornerback, McKinstry has the patient footwork to mirror releases. He rarely allows any separation on outside releases. The All-American compresses outside releases along the boundary and plays physical throughout the route. His speed allows him to match pace with speedsters on vertical routes. McKinstry also offers impressive burst to recover and close distances quickly. He is a sticky soft shoe press-man corner who limits separation at the top of the stem. The junior quickly decelerates to match and shut down comeback routes. He is quick to drive on underneath routes in zone but isn’t a playmaker in zone coverages. McKinstry gets his hands in at the last second to break up passes, even though he prefers to have his eyes on the receiver instead of the quarterback. He has flashes of being a willing and impactful run defender, but his motor is inconsistent in run defense. He is too willing to sit on blocks and let other defenders make the play. McKinstry’s block defeat skills need work, and he must avoid grab and drag tackling. He primarily aligned on the right side of Alabama’s defense as a soft-shoe press corner in 2022. Unfortunately, he wasn’t exposed to a wide variety of coverages or coverage roles. McKinstry’s frame is high-cut, and his arm length is acceptable but not elite. The Alabama native’s arm length limits his ability to play the ball from behind the receiver. He’s not twitchy and sits high in his stance. He battles early false steps near the line of scrimmage and rarely jams receivers despite lining up on their nose. Twitchy route runners test his athleticism. McKinstry suffers from mental lapses that need to be worked out of his game. Switch releases cause him to make mistakes, and he gets turned around too often. He is lax closing on crossing routes, offering quarterbacks an easy outlet over the middle of the field. McKinstry’s technique lapses when he thinks the quarterback has moved past his coverage assignment in the progression. He looks disengaged on some plays. McKinstry allows separation on double moves, and there are instances of him taking too long to decelerate and flip his hips on comeback routes. His hips carry some resistance because of his build. He gets grabby when he feels threatened on nuanced routes and will draw flags at the next level for holding the receiver’s jersey on crossers. McKinstry doesn’t play big at the catch point, and physical receivers subtly push off him to separate.

Overall, McKinstry possesses the physical tools to be a first round selection, but there’s high variance in his technique and effort play-to-play. Another year of experience might solve these issues and propel McKinstry into the early first round. He is still a developmental player learning to be a more versatile player.

Role & Scheme Fit: Outside cornerback in a press-man heavy scheme

Round Projection: Late First Round

Size: 6'1", 195 lbs. (Unofficial)

Submitted: 08-07-23