{"id":29366,"date":"2025-07-31T15:13:49","date_gmt":"2025-07-31T15:13:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=29366"},"modified":"2025-07-31T15:13:49","modified_gmt":"2025-07-31T15:13:49","slug":"packers-2024-breakout-worth-1st-round-pick-in-a-trade-insider-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=29366","title":{"rendered":"Packers 2024 Breakout Worth 1st-Round Pick in a Trade, Insider Says"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-2219551190-e1753971328799.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 95vw, 780px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-2219551190-e1753971328799.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-2219551190-e1753971328799.jpg?quality=15&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-2219551190-e1753971328799.jpg?quality=35&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1350 1350w\" alt=\"Packers 2024 Breakout Worth 1st-Round Pick in a Trade, Insider Says\" width=\"780\" height=\"439\" \/><\/figure>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>After the Green Bay Packers signed safety Xavier McKinney to a four-year, $68\u202fmillion contract last offseason, he immediately became one of the best players on Jeff Hafley\u2019s defense.<\/p>\n<p>But could a safety of his caliber be moved for a first\u2011round draft pick?<\/p>\n<p>Bill Barnwell of ESPN thinks so. In his July 30 article, Barnwell examined the trade value of every team\u2019s best player(s), and he listed McKinney as someone who could net a first-round pick in a trade. The Packers clearly don\u2019t want to trade their All-Pro safety; this is just about his perceived market value.<\/p>\n<p>But netting a first-rounder in exchange for a safety is rare business in the NFL. Is Barnwell a tad crazy here? Let\u2019s discuss.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>McKinney Had a Career-Best Season in 2024<\/h2>\n<div id=\"attachment_5266051\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Xavier-McKinney-e1738092853171.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=738\" alt=\"Packers 2024 Breakout Worth 1st-Round Pick in a Trade, Insider Says\" width=\"738\" height=\"531\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-5266051\" data-lazy-load=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-5266051\">\n<\/div>\n<p>Put simply, McKinney had a historic start with Green Bay last year. He snagged interceptions in each of his first five games \u2014 something that hasn\u2019t happened since the AFL\u2013NFL merger.<\/p>\n<p>He finished with eight interceptions, which ranked second in the NFL, also setting a franchise record for picks in a single season for Green Bay. McKinney also had 88 tackles (60 solo, two for loss), a sack and 11 pass breakups.<\/p>\n<p>His performance earned him first-team All-Pro honors and his first Pro Bowl nod. Mid\u2011season, he was also awarded NFC Defensive Player of the Month for October, highlighting his dominant impact early in the season.<\/p>\n<p>Now heading into Year 2 with Green Bay, McKinney is likely just getting started.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Could the Green Bay Packers Really Get a 1st Round Pick in a Trade for Xavier McKinney?<\/h2>\n<p>Given McKinney\u2019s elite production and his importance to their defense, any trade would likely require an exceptional return from the Packers\u2019 perspective.<\/p>\n<p>In theory, a trade could be realistic if a contender in need of an elite safety was willing to part with a first-rounder. That team would have to <em>really<\/em> value McKinney in order to spend that much on him, though. And in today\u2019s NFL, safeties simply don\u2019t get traded for first-round picks.<\/p>\n<p>Even with trades involving more high\u2011profile safeties, compensation in the form of a full first\u2011round pick just doesn\u2019t happen. Most safety trades involve mid- to late-round swaps or player\u2011plus\u2011mid-round packages. For example, in 2023 the Philadelphia Eagles acquired All\u2011Pro safety Kevin Byard from the Titans, but sent only safety Terrell Edmunds and two late-round picks back in exchange for him.<\/p>\n<p>A more recent\u2014and higher threshold\u2014comparative move came in early 2025, when veteran safety C.J.\u202fGardner-Johnson was traded from the Eagles to the Texans in exchange for Kenyon Green\u2014a former first\u2011round offensive lineman\u2014and a 2026 fifth-rounder.<\/p>\n<p>If Barnwell is correct and McKinney\u2019s value really would be a first\u2011rounder \u2014 and we think that\u2019s a definite stretch \u2014 it could present an interesting dilemma for the Packers. Given his All\u2011Pro status, playmaking abilities and age (he turns 27 in early August), there\u2019s no doubt some teams would be interested. Netting a future first-rounder is always nice.<\/p>\n<p>Considering his fit in their scheme, any trade package would need to be outstanding, and it\u2019s very likely not something the Packers would entertain. He\u2019s already a proven player, whereas any future draft picks would be rolls of the dice. Still, it\u2019s always nice when the free agents you sign become more valuable with time, and that\u2019s certainly been the case with McKinney.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Discussing the idea of trading Xavier McKinney: can the Packers net a first-round pick for their star safety?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":29367,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29366","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-green-bay-packers"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Packers 2024 Breakout Worth 1st-Round Pick in a Trade, Insider Says - Breaking News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=29366\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Packers 2024 Breakout Worth 1st-Round Pick in a Trade, Insider Says - 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