GREEN BAY, Wis. (WFRV) – The Packers’ biggest off-season acquisition and star safety Xavier McKinney was rewarded for his stellar first season with Green Bay by being named a first-team All-Pro with 31 first-team votes.
McKinney’s excellence was defined by his ball-hawking abilities, with 11 pass defenses and a team-high eight interceptions, good for second in the NFL and most by a Packer since Charles Woodson’s nine in 2009.
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McKinney also led the team in defensive snaps with 1,067 and recorded 58 solo tackles (85 total), a sack and a fumble recovery.
McKinney’s eight games this year with an interception was tied for the most by any player in the NFL and most by any Packer in team history. He also became the first player since the 1970 NFL merger with an interception in each of his first five games with a team.
The 25-year-old safety also tied the team record for the most consecutive games with an interception in those five straight games. The other Packer to do so, Irv Comp, did it in 1943.
The first Packers safety to be named a first-team All-Pro in 24 years, he was also the first defensive back to earn first-team honors since 2009 (Woodson).
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A few other players got votes for All-Pro teams:
- Left guard Elgton Jenkins
- Right tackle Zach Tom
- Kickoff returner and cornerback Keisean Nixon (votes in both spots)
- Linebacker Edgerrin Cooper
McKinney’s historic chapter in the Packers’ season transitions to the postseason on Sunday as the No. 7 seed Green Bay visits Philadelphia to take on the No. 2 seeded Eagles at 3:30 p.m. from Lincoln Financial Field.
