Xavier McKinney walked out of East Rutherford with a four-year, $68 million deal and immediately made the New York Giants look cheap for letting him go. Inverse buyer's remorse aside, just one year after putting up All-Pro numbers in Green Bay, he’s dealing with a calf injury that’s expected to keep him sidelined for the rest of camp... and possibly a bit longer.
The Packers say it’s not serious. McKinney says he’ll be ready when the season starts. But the way this thing is trending, it’s already possible he won’t be back on the field until after the regular season starts. That’s not ideal for a team that had tons of defensive back turnover this offseason.
As for the injury, McKinney told ESPN’s Rob Demovsky: “Glad we caught it when we caught it, but I’ll be ready when it’s time to go.” He probably will be. But when a guy who’s coming off a career year starts preseason on the shelf, everyone pays attention. Even the ones who let him walk.
Ex-Giants star Xavier McKinney hits preseason snag after huge first year with Packers
Giants fans can try to convince themselves all they want, but that contract was never happening. Joe Schoen was never going to throw a multi-year, $68 million deal at a safety, even for a good-not-great (at the time) player like McKinney. But that doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt a lot when he left.
McKinney tied for second in interceptions with eight, didn’t give up a single touchdown in coverage, and was basically the eraser Green Bay’s defense desperately needed. He went from a “good player the Giants didn’t want to overpay” to one of the top-ranked safeties in football. So yeah, you could say his impact was pretty hard to ignore.
Instead of paying McKinney, Big Blue waited a year, then turned around and gave Jevón Holland a three-year, $45.3 million deal just one offseason later. It’s not exactly the same situation, but it’s close enough to raise an eyebrow.
Holland’s coming off a down year in Miami, but he’s pretty versatile and expected to help lead a revamped secondary alongside Tyler Nubin. If he plays like the guy from his first three seasons, the Giants won’t be second-guessing a thing.
McKinney played his way into a massive deal. Then proved he deserved it. Now the Giants are trying to move on with the safety they did pay. Maybe it works out. Maybe it doesn’t. But Holland’s the guy now, and he better be good enough to make everyone stop looking back. For now, it's hoping McKinney's injury isn't too serious and keeping an eye out for what's next.