Saints News Network

Saints Unsurprisingly Trade Up In NFL Draft To Take Alabama's Kool-Aid McKinstry

The Saints made a fairly good trade in the second round and used it to take Alabama's Kool-Aid McKinstry.

John Hendrix

Alabama defensive back Kool-Aid McKinstry (1) gestures in celebration after Tennessee failed to
Alabama defensive back Kool-Aid McKinstry (1) gestures in celebration after Tennessee failed to / Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA
In this story:

The Saints ended up making a trade in the second round, which is hardly a surprise to anyone. New Orleans dealt with Green Bay, going up four spots to move up to No. 41 and sending the Packers back picks No. 168 and 190. In turn, they used the pick on Kool-Aid-McKinstry from Alabama.

QUICK THOUGHTS: The Saints continue a trend by taking a defensive back on Day 2. McKinstry is quite the player, and it's important to remember that selecting him doesn't necessarily mean anything for Marshon Lattimore. McKinstry offers strong coverage, displaying some real intelligience. He had a fracture on the pinky toe side of his right foot on the fifth metatarsal that turned up during the Combine. He's expected to be ready for training camp, however.

Draft Profile Notes (from Daniel Jeremiah)

Mitchell has outstanding size, toughness and polish for the position. He is deceptively fast because of his long stride. He has surprisingly good route polish for a bigger receiver. He understands how to change tempo, and he's clean getting in and out of breaks. He gave Kool-Aid McKinstry a lot of trouble in the Alabama game last September, finishing with three catches for 78 yards and two TDs. He has some wow catches on fades and 50/50 balls. He can climb the ladder, hang and finish (SEE: his TD grab against Washington in the College Football Playoff). It looks like he gets a little lazy at times on the back side of routes, assuming the ball is going elsewhere. He doesn't have a ton of production after the catch. Overall, though, Mitchell is an ideal X receiver. He can make plays when covered, and he's a real weapon in the red zone.

KEY NEEDS: WR, DT, OL, TE, DB

Remaining Saints Picks

  • Round 5, 150th Overall
  • Round 5, 170th Overall (Compensatory)
  • Round 5, 175th Overall (Compensatory)
  • Round 6, 199th Overall (via PHI)
  • Round 7, 239th Overall (via DEN)

Saints Draft Coverage (Video)

Published |Modified
John Hendrix
JOHN HENDRIX

I officially started covering the New Orleans Saints & other NFL topics in 2011. My work has been featured on various outlets over the years. I worked closely with Skyhorse Publishing in Fall 2018 to update the book, Tales From the New Orleans Saints Sidelines, which filled in all Saints material from the 2013-2017 seasons. Prior to joining Saints News Network, I served as the Managing Editor of SB Nation's Canal Street Chronicles for 3.5 years, and before that with FanSided's Who Dat Dish as the Managing Editor for several years. I have also had experiences of being a freelance Saints reporter for The Sun Herald in Biloxi, MS and a contributing writer for WDSU, a local NBC TV station in New Orleans. I have appeared on a vast amount of TV and Radio shows, both nationally and locally. For tips, comments, or suggestions, please contact me at johnhendrix@saintsnews.net