Going into Year 3, wants more.
Of course, there is an on-field element to that. He played a key role in a surprisingly stingy secondary last season โ one that finished 2026 ranked fifth in pass yards allowed and 12th in Expected Points Added per play โ and McKinstry sees the ways it could have been, and will be better.
But, beyond the obvious, what he really wants is for his voice to resonate.
โA leader for the whole team,โ McKinstry said, โand not just the guys (in the secondary).โ
McKinstry is still more than three months shy of his 24th birthday, but he recognizes the opportunity in front of him. Longtime franchise pillars Demario Davis (New York Jets) and Cameron Jordan (unsigned) arenโt in the locker room, and McKinstry sees an opportunity to be a player the team rallies around.
His main mission this year, he said, is โaccepting my roleโ as a leader โ something heโs been nudged toward by both coaches and teammates.
โItโs them embracing me as a leader, and me, who I am as a player and who I am as a guy, growing into that role,โ McKinstry said. โI know itโs time for me to be a leader and itโs time for me to step up in multiple ways.โ
Having a leadership voice goes hand in hand with what happens on the field, though.
McKinstryโs first two professional seasons were somewhat volatile. As a rookie, McKinstry was forced into the starting lineup by injury and a mid-season trade. Then the Saints changed their defensive scheme and McKinstry was suddenly the No. 1 option on the outside.
One of the things the Saints like about McKinstry is that the No. 1 role never felt too big for him โ even when he would get beaten on Sundays.
โYou can definitely see the confidence,โ coach Kellen Moore said. โCorner is a hard position; you play some really hard downs in the NFL, playing against these premier receivers. The guys that are really special are obviously really talented, but they also respond to plays that donโt go their way, because inevitably there will be a play.โ
Now he is benefiting from the stability. He is entering the 2026 season as the Saintsโ unquestioned top corner, and while his play has been imperfect his first two seasons, he is eager to show what he can do now that heโs had a full season playing in defensive coordinator Brandon Staleyโs defense.
There were a lot of moving pieces in that unit last year. Starting safety Julian Blackmon was lost for the year after one game, shifting rookie Jonas Sanker into the starting lineup. Isaac Yiadom started early in the season before being supplanted by then-rookie Quincy Riley. All of which happened while New Orleans was breaking in a new scheme.
McKinstry was one of the few pieces the Saints could reliably count on every week. He started each of the Saintsโ 17 games, finishing second on the team in defensive snaps (1,075) behind Davis.
Now, going into this season, the Saints are bringing back most of the same cast of characters in the secondary, with the lone exception being Alontae Taylor, who signed a big free agent contract with the Tennessee Titans. Sanker is expected to drop down and fill Taylorโs void as the slot defender.
The relative continuity has McKinstry excited for what is possible in Year 2 under Staley.
โCoach Staleyโs scheme is very unique, I would say,โ McKinstry said. โGoing through year one and finding out all the small kinks, learning more and more, facing different teams that do different things and learning different ways to play coverage, I feel like weโre going to be better as a back end. Weโre returning a lot of guys, so I feel like we will be better connected.โ
Moore sees that, too. He was encouraged by the way the defensive secondary finished the season. He pointed out the teamโs successes on third downs โ New Orleans led the NFL last season in yards per pass play allowed on third downs (4.2) โ and a low explosive play rate as evidence. And heโs seeing that carry over into the summer.
โI thought our back end just did an excellent job throughout the season as it progressed,โ Moore said. โ... You just saw the confidence growing, and even out here in OTAs you can see these guysโ confidence.โ