LOS ANGELES – With a chorus of media around him, Xavier McKinney stood inside the visiting locker room at SoFi Stadium and humbly did his best to describe the indescribable.
Then, Packers rookie safety Evan Williams entered the room and took it from there.
"Best in the league!" the rookie safety boastfully declared to those around their adjoining lockers.
There's a case to be made for that after McKinney extended his historic interception streak to five games during Sunday's 24-19 win over the Los Angeles Rams.
Signed as an unrestricted free agent in March, the fifth-year safety is the first NFL player since the 1970 merger to have an INT in his first five games with a new team. McKinney also matches Irv Comp's 81-year-old team record for most consecutive games with a pick.
McKinney made two game-changing plays in the third quarter – first corralling a Kyren Williams fumble forced by Packers defensive end Kingsley Enagbare and then picking off Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford on the next series.
Green Bay's offense generated touchdowns off both takeaways to go from being down 13-10 at halftime to leading 24-13 with four minutes left in the third quarter.
"It's super important because we needed it," McKinney said. "That's complementary football and we did that today very well. That's part of the game. I'm glad the offense went down and was able to score on that drive."
McKinney said Stafford looked him off more times than any quarterback he's faced on the young 2024 season. The fifth-year veteran countered with patience, trusting that his instincts would eventually lead him to an interception.
It did with 8 minutes, 15 seconds left in the third quarter when Stafford tried to sail a deep ball to Tutu Atwell on third-and-10. McKinney wasn't having it, picking off the pass and returning it 28 yards to the Green Bay 46.
Paired with the fumble recovery, McKinney became the first Packers player in more than a decade to record an INT and fumble recovery in the same quarter. The last one to do it? Pro Football Hall of Famer Charles Woodson against Carolina in Week 2 of the 2011 season.
"I got a good break off of it," said McKinney of his INT. "Obviously, he's one of the great quarterbacks that we've seen play. He's great at looking off and it was tough all game to be able to get a good feel for him, but I knew if I stayed persistent and stayed consistent in what I was seeing from him that I was gonna be able to get one, and I got a good break and made a play on the ball."
With Jaire Alexander (groin) missing his second straight game, the Packers dug into their safety depth in deploying a nickel package featuring McKinney and Williams on the back end, rookie second-round pick Javon Bullard in the slot and nickel cornerback Keisean Nixon bumping outside.
The Rams answered back in the fourth quarter with a five-play, 91-yard TD drive, but Green Bay's defense appeared more confident and aggressive after McKinney's two third-quarter takeaways.
That confidence showed when Williams held his ground while defending Rams tight end Colby Parkinson on a slant with LA facing fourth-and-5 at the Green Bay 38 in the final minute of the game.
"They'd honestly run that quite a few times," said Williams, who finished with a game-high 10 tackles and two pass breakups. "I had a good feel for the route at the end of the game. I didn't think he was gonna try to break out and make a long throw, so I was kind of just sitting on it. He broke back in, was able to get my hand in there, celebrated with the crowd."
McKinney's two takeaways pushed Green Bay's total to 14 on the season – its most through the first five games since 2002 (15). It's also the first time since 1996 the Packers have had multiple takeaways in each of the first five games of the season.
While McKinney didn't make too much out of his own record-setting day, cornerback Eric Stokes referred to the safety's "unbelievable" run as "'Madden' stuff." Williams celebrated his veteran teammate's achievement, adding: "Five for five. Being out there with him, it's just like watching greatness."
When dissecting the win, McKinney remained more focused on the interception he nearly had on the Rams' third possession of the third quarter than his actual pick, which already ties his career high for a season.
Because to McKinney, the work is far from over.
"I'm on a mission and that mission doesn't stop until we played our last game," McKinney said. "We got a long season. I'm not gonna sit up here and celebrate my picks because I know that it can be more than that.
"I dropped one today. I'm gonna get back to work and continue to just keep working on my craft and try to keep getting more of those."
