New Orleans Saints cornerback Ga’Quincy “Kool-Aid” McKinstry is the NFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 5 of the NFL season, the league announced on Wednesday.
After entering Sunday’s game against the New York Giants without an NFL interception, McKinstry picked off quarterback Jaxson Dart twice in the fourth quarter as the Saints rallied for a 26-14 victory, their first of the season.
A prep star at Pinson Valley, McKinstry became the 10th former Alabama defensive back to win an NFC or AFC Defensive Player of the Week Award in the past 10 seasons. Starting with the 2016 campaign, former Crimson Tide defensive backs who have won include Brian Branch, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, Landon Collins, Trevon Diggs, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Eddie Jackson, Kareem Jackson, Xavier McKinney and Patrick Surtain II. Collins won three times and Eddie Jackson, McKinney and Surtain won twice apiece.
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The other Player of the Week Award winners for Week 5 were Carolina Panthers running back Rico Dowdle, NFC Offensive; Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud; AFC Offensive; Denver Broncos linebacker Nik Bonitto, AFC Defensive; San Francisco 49ers kicker Eddy Pineiro, NFC Special Teams; and Tennessee Titans wide receiver Chimere Dike, AFC Special Teams.
McKinstry is the second player from an Alabama high school or college to win an NFL Player of the Week Award this season. New England Patriots cornerback Marcus Jones (Enterprise, Troy) was the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week for Week 4.
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