Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin and general manager Omar Khan are in Tuscaloosa to scout a bevy of the talented players. But cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry, who has a fracture in his foot, was still testing at his pro day despite not testing at the NFL Combine.
And according to Kyron Samuels, McKinstry put up some fantastic numbers on a bad foot, with a 4.46 40-yard dash and great jump numbers.
The numbers fell anywhere between 4.43 and 4.47 on the ground, which gives McKinstry plenty enough long speed when that was a legitimate question about his game coming into the process.
McKinstry has made a name for himself as one of the more consistent and disruptive cornerbacks in all of college football. In 2022, the sophomore forced 18 incompletions which was second-most among corners in the power-5 according to PFF. His targets were cut in half this past season, as a known commodity that opposing quarterbacks avoided like the plague.
With over 1,200 snaps in coverage, there’s more than enough evidence here that McKinstry can be a high-quality starter at the next level which means there’s not as much that needs projecting. No one is a perfect prospect, however. McKinstry is a good athlete with solid build up speed but lacks the true top-end gear that allows some of more athletically gifted receivers to stack him vertically. He possesses a very good understanding of how to use his length to control his man, but he can be a bit grabbier than his penalty numbers suggest, particularly at the break point. Lastly, for teams that prioritize their secondary turning the ball over, McKinstry’s lack of interceptions will be a talking point, mainly because he prefers to go chest to chest with receivers instead of opting to try and pick the ball off.
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