New Orleans Saints cornerback Ga’Quincy “Kool-Aid” McKinstry had a spot at home just waiting for his first-interception football. In his 20th NFL game, the former Pinson Valley High School and Alabama standout got his memento – and a companion.
In the Saints’ 26-14 victory over the New York Giants on Sunday, McKinstry intercepted two passes in the fourth quarter.
“I got a spot at home I’m going to put it at, definitely,” McKinstry said. “Right now, I got a football in there that I just keep at the house. I put right there just to keep at the house to throw around. But now I’m going to replace that with both of those balls. So now, yeah, it’s very special. …
“It mean a lot, man. And I just know I work so hard. I grind, grind this offseason, grind with my guys. So, you know, when the opportunity like that come, it just feel good. It feel like the work is paying off. But I also understand that I got to keep my head down and keep grinding.”
McKinstry also was presented with a game ball for his performance on Sunday.
“I’m just glad my coaches and teammates trust me and believe in me,” McKinstry said. “So for me to get the game ball from those guys is very special to me. It’s something for me to build on, something for me to continue to grow. I feel like it’s areas where I can continue to grow and that’s what I got those guys for, so I love those guys.”
As a second-round rookie last season, McKinstry started nine games and played 65 percent of the Saints’ defensive snaps. This season, only linebacker Demario Davis has played more defensive snaps for New Orleans than McKinstry.
“He is a phenomenal player,” Saints coach Kellen Moore said after Sunday’s game. “We think the world of him. You know, he’s played some hard downs the first few weeks of the season, and for him to come up with two big-time interceptions and make a bunch of plays throughout this entire game, you know, I was so fired up for Kool-Aid. He deserved everything that’s coming his way this week, and so we’re really excited for him.”
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McKinstry got his first interception off Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart on a long pass intended for wide receiver Jalin Hyatt at the New Orleans 5-yard line with 9:57 to play.
On the Giants’ next possession, McKinstry snared a pass across the middle intended for wide receiver Beaux Collins at the New York 45-yard line with 5:07 to play.
“I feel like I was a little more locked in this week,” McKinstry said. “I did a little extra of everything. I put in more work this week, I trained harder, I ran on my own a little bit after practice, and I’m sticking to that definitely. Definitely found me a new routine, and I’m going stick to it.”
New Orleans trailed New York 14-3 in the second quarter, rallied for a 16-14 halftime lead and shut out the Giants in the second half.
The Saints defense ended five consecutive New York possessions with takeaways.
“We believe in each other, man,” McKinstry said. “We know we got a talented group. We know if we play together, believe in each other and play for one another that we can be as special as we want to be. So I feel like coming out of halftime, that’s was something that we harped on. That was something that we was talking about. That was something that we wanted to depend on, and that’s what we did.”
Current Giants and former Auburn wide receiver Darius Slayton lost a fumble at the New Orleans 32-yard line that safety Jonas Sanker returned 27 yards to the New York 41 to set up the first-half-ending field goal that gave the Saints the lead.
In the second half, New Orleans defensive end Cam Jordan recovered Dart’s fumble at the Saints 46, safety Jordan Howden returned running back Cam Skattebo’s fumble 86 yards for a touchdown and McKinstry intercepted two passes.
McKinstry contributed to Howden’s touchdown by keeping Slayton from spoiling the return.
“I knew that Slayton is kind of a fast guy,” McKinstry said, “so I knew I had to go and get on my horse so we can make sure that we get this touchdown because I knew how important it was.
“And that just goes with being good teammates, man. He would have did the same for me, man. So why not do the same for him? I feel like this defense is very special. I love those guys. I love this team, man, so when plays like that come up and my fellow teammate is making the play, it feel like I’m making the play.”
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In McKinstry’s rookie season, the Saints had a 5-12 record and lost their final four games. This season, New Orleans opened with four straight losses, so Sunday’s victory was the first for the franchise since their previous game against the Giants. The Saints topped New York 14-11 on Dec. 8.
“Last year is last year,” McKinstry said. “This year is this year. I feel like it’s very special, and it’s like I said, something for us to build on this year with this team and this staff. So, man, you know, it’s very special for us. I feel like we just got to build on it. We got to keep our head down and keep chopping.”
The Saints play the New England Patriots at noon CDT Sunday at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
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