Mississippi State’s Benardrick McKinney Likely Going to NFL

Sep 20, 2014; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs linebacker Benardrick McKinney (50) tackles LSU Tigers running back Kenny Hilliard (27) during the third quarter of a game at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

It’s not really the time of year when you hear about prospects declaring for the NFL Draft, but according to Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net, Mississippi State linebacker Benardrick McKinney is as good as gone after this season, his redshirt junior year.

McKinney is a versatile, 6-foot-5, 249 pound linebacker who is a former quarterback with enticing athleticism and tantalizing upside. He nearly declared for the NFL after his redshirt sophomore season, but made the correct choice to return to college and play another year for the Bulldogs, who are one of the best teams in all of college football right now.

Along with Mississippi State’s emergence in college football comes a bigger, brighter spotlight on all prospects who might be eligible for the NFL Draft.

McKinney is no stranger to the spotlight, and is one who has made it clear he plans on leaving after this season without actually explicitly stating it. A potential first round pick, McKinney needs to work on his technique rather than relying upon natural athletic ability, but certainly with some seasoning and coaching in the NFL, this phenomenal physical talent will be able to make an impact early on in his eventual NFL career.

To start with, he’ll need to impress scouts by building on a season in which he has 36 tackles, six for loss, and three sacks through five games. His TFL and sack totals are already just one shy of eclipsing or tying what he was able to do all of last season, so the improvement for this guy is there, he just needs to be consistent with it and stay on the right trajectory as he makes the transition to the NFL.

In the report I previously alluded to from Tony Pauline, scouts have been impressed with his improvement this season and his ability to play multiple positions has stood out. He showed a much better awareness of everything going on around him rather than taking care of his job and his job only.

This is an intriguing prospect with size, athletic ability, and versatility that seems to be one of the higher upside picks available in the 2015 draft class should he leave.