At Xavier McKinney’s lowest point, after breaking his left hand in a November off-roading accident, the Giants free safety never would have believed he’d be making a game-winning playoff tackle in January.
“Hell naw,” McKinney said at his locker after Sunday’s 31-24 Wild Card win in Minnesota. “It was low moments for me. Honestly I didn’t know when I was gonna come back or if I was gonna be able to. I tried to stay positive, but I wasn’t sure. I could only rehab, get better, try to get back out as fast as I could. But I couldn’t imagine today and what happened.”
What happened is that McKinney — with the fingers on his left hand taped together onto a splint — stood up Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson five yards short of the sticks for the game-winning turnover on downs in the Giants’ first postseason victory in 11 years.
