Cowboys 2020 mock draft: Reloading the defensive backfield

If the Cowboys are looking for a player to replicate and replace what Byron Jones has given them for the past five years, there may not be a more perfect fit than Alabama’s Xavier McKinney.

Though McKinney is listed as a safety by most draft outlets, he’s really not pinned into any one of the safety positions. As a matter of fact, he’s maybe only slightly behind Clemson’s Isaiah Simmons in terms of positional versatility, though he’s more polished overall as a defensive back.

McKinney is a 6-foot-1, 200 pound bullet of a defensive back with excellent reactive quickness and instincts to find the football.

Although he’s not the best true free safety, he can come up in the box and play man coverage on slot receivers, he is instinctive in zone coverage, and he attacks the line of scrimmage in the run game with fearlessness.

He’s excellent as a blitzer and can be used all over the defensive formation. New defensive coordinator Mike Nolan could put him anywhere in the formation and he’s going to make life tough for the opposing offense.