After Combine, Packers Probably Will Pass on Top Safety Kamren Kinchens

The Green Bay Packers under GM Brian Gutekunst pursues high-end athletes. Here are the standouts and the major disappointment from Friday at the Scouting Combine.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst probably will leave the Scouting Combine with at least two high-profile defensive backs taken off his NFL Draft board.

At cornerback, it’s Missouri’s Ennis Rakestraw. At safety, it’s Miami’s Kamren Kinchens.

Those were major developments considering the Packers’ need at those positions. That need is especially acute at safety, which is a vital position in new defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley’s scheme and where Darnell Savage, Rudy Ford and Jonathan Owens played almost 2,000 snaps last year and are headed to free agency.

Kinchens was in the hotly contested battle to be the first safety selected. Measuring 5-foot-11 1/4 and 203 pounds, Kinchens ran his 40 in 4.65 seconds. That was tied for the slowest among the safeties who ran the 40 on Friday. In a less-important drill, the broad jump, Kinchens was last at 9 feet, 2 inches.

Relative Athletic Score combines height, weight, speed and other testing numbers into a 0-to-10 score. Kinchens’ mark was 2.11 – a woeful number. He’ll have a chance to improve on it at Miami’s pro day, when he can re-run the 40 and perform some of the tests he skipped, such as the vertical jump and 20-yard shuttle.

Still, as was the case for Rakestraw, it’s almost impossible to believe Gutekunst will use a first- or second-round pick on a safety with average height and weight and below-average speed. 

Under Gutekunst, the lowest RAS for a first-round pick was 8.37 (Savage). Of his picks in the top three rounds, only one was below 8.00 (Jayden Reed, 6.74, because of height and weight).

“Any opportunity, anywhere. It’s been a dream to play in the NFL,” Kinchens said a day earlier. “I would think in my head, I’m more of a rangy type of guy but, when you look at the film, there are some plays on there that show up a lot, my physicality.”

Kinchens was a superb playmaker at Miami with six interceptions in 2022 and five in 2023. Of his 638 defensive snaps in 2023, he played 379 at free safety, 110 in the box and 113 in the slot. All those numbers would have made him a player of interest for the Packers., who are looking for a versatile playmaker.

“I think my instincts,” he said. “I think my aggressiveness I’m going to have to learn how to control so I won’t be taking too many risks. But learning how to take risks and no bad pays. I just want good to average plays and then have those splash, great plays.”

Instead, the 40 and RAS might take him out of consideration.

Gutekunst hasn’t drafted many safeties. Savage, a first-round pick in 2019, ran a 4.36 in the 40 and had the aforementioned 8.37 RAS. Last year’s seventh-round pick, Anthony Johnson, ran a 4.62 in the 40 but excelled in the jumps and had an 8.13 RAS. Ford and Owens, who were added as free agents, were better than 9.0.

Including Kinchens, five safeties entered the Scouting Combine in the battle to be the first off the board.

Minnesota’s Tyler Nubin, who might be the front-runner as a safety who “can do it all,” is coming off surgery and did not test.

Packers Need Safety, and Gophers’ Tyler Nubin Can ‘Do It All’

Washington State’s Jaden Hicks (6-1 7/8, 211) skipped the 40 and the 20-yard shuttle but had a 37.5-inch vertical. He doesn’t have enough numbers to have a RAS. His size and production (155 tackles, three interceptions, 10 passes defensed in two seasons) make him an intriguing prospect. He has extensive experience deep, in the box and in the slot.

Georgia’s Javon Bullard (5-10 1/2, 198) ran a 4.47 in the 40, sixth-fastest at the position. He skipped the other tests so does not have enough data for a RAS. Bullard had back-to-back seasons of two interceptions. He played mostly slot in 2022 and mostly deep in 2023.

USC’s Calen Bullock (6-2, 188) ran a 4.48 in the 40, seventh-fastest at the position. Like Bullard, he skipped the other tests and does not have a RAS. Bullock had nine interceptions in three seasons, including five in 2022. In 2023, his playing time was relatively evenly split among deep, box and slot.

“There’s been questions about my size my whole life playing this position. I knew I was one of the slimmer safeties coming in,” he said a day earlier. “I would say that’s driven me my whole life. Being a skinny kid playing the safety position, I knew I had to go out there and I had to prove more and show I can play the safety position.”

If Gutekunst’s plan is to strike early for a safety and then grab another later, the athleticism will be particularly intriguing among those who were deemed mid-round prospects entering the Combine.

Texas Tech’s Dadrion Taylor-Demerson (5-10 3/8, 197) was the fastest safety with a 4.41 in the 40 and a 38-inch vertical. He had seven interceptions in two seasons.

Auburn’s Jaylin Simpson (5-11 1/2, 179) was the third-fastest at 4.45. Simpson, who started his career at cornerback, had a career-high four interceptions in 2023. He cemented his athleticism here:

.@AuburnFootball safety Jaylin Simpson with the flip of the Combine 🔥

📺: #NFLCombine on @nflnetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/huKCMlxJvh

— NFL (@NFL) March 2, 2024

“You’ll see a complete DB. High IQ, playmaking ability, pursuit, problem-solving,” Simpson said. “I still can’t believe I’m here. I just never thought.”

Utah’s Cole Bishop (6-2, 206) tied Simpson for third-fastest at 4.45 and had a 39-inch vertical. He had 21.5 tackles for losses, three interceptions and 12 passes defensed in three seasons. He pointed to his ability to cover tight ends and play both safety positions as strengths to his game.

Georgia’s Tykee Smith (5-10, 202) was sixth-fastest at 4.46. He had a career-high four interceptions in 2023.

A later-round option, Texas Tech’s Tyler Owens (6-2, 216) won the high jump and broad jump (but pulled up on his 40), though his wacky comments to reporters might take him off the board.

“I don't believe in space,” Owens said. “I'm real religious, so I think we're alone right now. I don't think there's other planets and other stuff like that.” Religious or not, the fact there are planets is well-established. NASA missions have visited them all, from Mercury to Neptune.

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