The Dolphins already plucked one ball-hawking safety from Oregon who has the look of a longtime starter.
They hope they found another over the weekend.
Like Jevon Holland, new Dolphins defensive back Verone McKinley III is a takeaway magnet, an instinctive player and a strong communicator with a nose for the football.
Holland had nine interceptions in two years at Oregon, then picked off two passes, forced two fumbles and recovered three fumbles as a Dolphins rookie last season. McKinley had 11 interceptions in four years at Oregon, including six last season, which tied for the most in the nation.
“He’s one of my best friends,” Holland said Wednesday. “His talent is going to rise to the top. I believe in him a lot. Hell of a player, even better guy. He tracks the ball phenomenal.”
So why was Holland a second-round pick and considered a top prospect while McKinley went undrafted?
Size and measurable traits are a big part of it. Holland is 6-1, 207, ideal for an NFL safety. McKinley is 5-10, 198.
Holland ran the 40-yard dash in 4.46 seconds before last year’s draft. McKinley was timed at 4.65 at Oregon’s Pro Day.
NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein calls McKinley a “classic” case of “pitting the traits versus the tape. In one [regard], we have an undersized, short-armed safety with average speed.”
But… “we have game tape highlighting McKinley’s instincts, short-area quickness, aggressive demeanor and nose for making plays on the football,” Zierlein said. “He’s going to give way to some of the bigger bodies he’ll encounter in the NFL, but he’s a natural football player with an above-average feel for timing and angles…. Good communicator with a pro demeanor. Hits pass catchers with everything he has to knock the ball loose. McKinley has the talent to make plays as a nickel safety.”
But… his “size and length are on the lower end of the NFL spectrum,” Zierlein added. “Size creates scheme uncertainty on the next level.”
McKinley doesn’t want to hear any complaints about his size.
“I feel I play big,” he told NFL Network’s “Good Morning Football” last month. “If you look at some of the safeties in today’s game, you have guys smaller than me: Budda Baker, Tyrann Mathieu and Quandre Diggs, who just got paid [three years, $40 million with Seattle].
“You can’t say anything about my size because I play big. You see me taking on running backs that were 230. I took on tight ends that were 280 and made them fumble. I feel I play big and make plays regardless of who’s in front of me.”
McKinley began his Oregon career at cornerback before moving to safety, where he earned the nickname The General.
“The General became a thing going into the [2020] COVID year. We had some opt outs [including Holland]. Some guys needed to step up. I was one of the guys to step up.
“I was commanding the defense, controlling things, making checks, making calls, making sure everybody was on the same page and I started to get the name The General, because the General controls everything. With my play and my leadership and my ability to explain things and be a voice for our team after wins, after losses, that’s how this whole General thing became a thing.”
Besides having a relationship with Holland, one of the NFL’s emerging young safeties, he also has a relationship with a veteran three-time Pro Bowl safety — Seattle’s Jamal Adams.
“When I was in seventh grade, I would work with Jamal Adams’ dad because I knew my vision for my career early on, and I wanted to start working,” McKinley said. “Jamal has been always someone I can go to, kind of a big brother. That [relationship with Adams and his father] is part of my development as a corner and being able to make a transition to safety.”
McKinley said he spoke to Adams “a couple days ago. It’s a relationship I truly value.”
Confidence certainly is not lacking.
Asked last month why a team should draft him, he said: “Teams should draft me because I’m one of the best defensive players in the country and I feel from my tape, from my football IQ and from the way I go about my business as a pro are all reasons to draft me.
“You want someone who can do everything — someone that can be in the box, someone that can play single high, someone that can play man, someone who can blitz, someone who wants that green dot on the back of their helmet to be able to call the defense. With great power comes great responsibility, and I want all of it.”
The Dolphins thought enough of him to guarantee him $85,000 whether he makes the team or not.
McKinley and Baylor safety JT Woods were the only players in the nation last season who had at least five interceptions and two or fewer touchdowns allowed in coverage.
“Last year, [I made] a statement that I’m one of the best in the country,” McKinley said. “And I’m really comfortable at the [safety] position and feel I’m one of the best at it.”
