Kool-Aid McKinstry
New Orleans SaintsModel Score
How good he is at what he is supposed to be doing, out of 100. Not a projection of what he will do next, and not a read on his contract. Median is about 70, and a 95 is rare. How it is built →
Season Stats · 17 games
Draft & College
He went about where consensus had him.
Covers the college seasons in our data, which does not always reach back to a player's first year.
Comps
STM Take
Tier 8 (#72) rookie to tier 7 (#51) sophomore for a 41st overall 2nd-round pick puts McKinstry on the year-two developmental band. The Alabama SEC pedigree plus the structural Saints anchor role gives him real college foundation. The 2026 question is whether McKinstry crosses into tier 5-6 territory in his year-three jump or whether the structural tier 7 finish becomes the realistic baseline.
McKinstry came out of Alabama as the New Orleans Saints' 2nd-round pick (41st overall) in 2024 after winning the 2023 SEC Championship plus earning First-Team All-SEC honors. He spent his rookie year as developmental depth before emerging into a starter role in 2025. His STTM career runs tier 8 (#72) rookie to tier 7 (#51) sophomore, a 21-spot improvement still on the developmental band.
Strengths
- Alabama SEC 2023 First-Team All-SEC honors plus the 41st overall draft slot establishes real elite college foundation.
- 21-spot year-over-year improvement from tier 8 (#72) rookie to tier 7 (#51) sophomore shows developmental trajectory.
Concerns
- Tier 7 (#51) sophomore finish for a 41st overall pick is below the year-two median for 2nd-round CB prospects on Pro Bowl trajectories.
- New Orleans's broader defensive identity transition plus the multi-year QB rebuild compresses the structural support around McKinstry.
What to watch: Whether McKinstry crosses into tier 5 (top 40) in 2026, the standard year-three threshold for 2nd-round CB picks on Pro Bowl trajectories.