2024 NFL Free Agency: Packers to sign S Xavier McKinney to mega deal

McKinney signed one of the three largest multi-year deals of any safety in the league and the largest for a non-Pro Bowler.

In a long-speculated move, the Green Bay Packers have agreed to a four-year, $68 million contract with former New York Giants safety Xavier McKinney, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Safety was one of, if not the biggest, need that the Packers had to address this offseason, as their three most-played players at the position were all in contract seasons last year.

According to Over the Cap, the only safeties making at least $17 million per year on multi-year deals are the Los Angeles Chargers’ Derwin James and the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Minkah Fitzpatrick. To say the least, this is a market-setting deal for a non-Pro Bowl safety.

McKinney, who is only 24 years old, played in 49 games for the Giants and started 46 of them over his four-year rookie deal. He will now be asked to help the Packers transition out of Joe Barry’s split-safety defense and into Jeff Hafley’s single-high defense. How Green Bay will deploy McKinney is still a bit of a question mark, as the Giants predominantly played a split-safety defense under coordinator Wink Martindale. With the Packers, McKinney should have a more defined role, either as a dropdown safety or as a post safety.

Luckily, a past relationship might help get McKinney up to speed. When he was recruited to Alabama, his primary recruiter was then-cornerbacks coach Derrick Ansley. Ansley is now the Packers’ pass game coordinator after spending last season as the Los Angeles Chargers’ defensive coordinator.

The addition of McKinney doesn’t mean that Green Bay is done adding talent to their defensive backfield, though. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Tom Silverstein, the team wants to re-sign Keisean Nixon to be the Packers’ starting slot cornerback. Eventually, Green Bay is going to need to find a safety to pair with McKinney, too, as the only other player with any real playing experience at the NFL level on the roster is second-year seventh-round pick Anthony Johnson Jr.