GREEN BAY, Wis. – In the NFL, there’s a 24-hour rule. Win or lose, a player has 24 hours to celebrate a victory or wallow in defeat before moving on to the next game.

For Green Bay Packers safety Xavier McKinney, it’s more of a 24-minute rule.

A few weeks ago, McKinney intercepted his sixth pass of the season in a win at Jacksonville. On the bus on the way to the airport, McKinney texted defensive backs coach Ryan Downard.

Was the film of Lions quarterback Jared Goff ready?

“That’s the mindset of the bigs,” defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley said.

McKinney is having a Defensive Player of the Year season. He is tied for the NFL lead with a career high in interceptions, and the Packers are 6-3 in part because of what McKinney has done on the field and in the locker room.

Why not enjoy it?

“I’ll be happy when I can win the Super Bowl,” McKinney said before Sunday’s game at the Chicago Bears. “For the most part, once you win, it’s in the past. Obviously, you realize what you could have done better and you look at that, but for me, win or lose, I’m on to the next one.

“I think that’s just the mindset you have to have in this league because it’s a competitive league. Every team will be different, every week will be different. I just try to make sure I’m always one step ahead and try to be one day ahead.”

With Downard, McKinney has a kindred spirit as a position coach.

McKinney was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Month for October. It was a big accomplishment, but the Packers didn’t sign McKinney — and McKinney isn’t playing for — Player of the Week or Player of the Month awards.

“I went straight to X when he came out (of the team meeting), like I always do, and told him to ignore that noise because I don’t want him looking at that stuff right now.” Downard said. “Of course, let’s be real, he sees, he hears. It’s a great honor, wonderful, but that’s not the goal we set for ourselves. This is not the goal he set. It sounds like a little coach talk, but I really believe it. …

“People tell me things about it. My wife sent me the chart (after McKinney won the award), so I go straight to X and say, “Stop listening to this thing.” They don’t validate who he is and he still has a lot to achieve. He probably thinks I’m a little crazy, but that’s the approach he needs to take. He won’t be affected by it, but he probably looks a little crazy at me when I tell him those things.”

Not crazy. Appreciated.

“Obviously, that’s not the end goal,” McKinney said. “I think he knows as well as I do and that’s why I love him so much because he’s always going to push me to be better.

“Obviously, it’s good to get that achievement and to be able to get that accolade, but at the end of the day, there’s more to achieve and more to do. I love it when he holds me to that standard of “Okay, go for it.” I’m already like that, but just someone else in my ear, “Hey, don’t worry about it. On to the next one.”

Before being selected by the Giants in the second round of the 2020 draft, McKinney played at Alabama. However, McKinney’s mindset predated his time with legendary Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban.

“That’s how I’ve always been wired,” McKinney said. “I’m always trying to get better. I’m trying to find ways to be a better player because I know my game isn’t perfect.”

McKinney may not be perfect, but he’s the perfect example for Downard to showcase in a position group that includes two rookies in Javon Bullard and Evan Williams.

He’s made a bunch of big plays, but he doesn’t follow them up at the expense of the defense. According to Sports Info Solutions, McKinney has more interceptions (six) than completions allowed (five). Pro Football Focus charged him with just three missed tackles.

It’s not often that a huge free agent signing is worth every penny of his contract, but his four-year, $67 million deal almost seems like a bargain considering what the defense means.

Part of that, obviously, is his talent. But he does his best to maximize his God-given ability.

“Really competitive,” Hafley said. “Last night, I got a text from him (at) probably 6:30 saying, ‘Hey, are you done with the third down plan? can you send it to me And you send it to him, and then this morning he comes before anybody and he wants to sit down and meet and he wants me to go over it with him.

“And then he goes over it with the RDs and the DBs, and he does it in the walk-through and he does it on the field, because he wants to get it right, and he gets mad when he doesn’t. , because that’s what adults do. And he holds himself to such a high standard that he doesn’t want to make mistakes, and it shows.

“That’s what your really good players do. Every piece counts, just like it does for us. So that’s the biggest kind of look-in I can give you of what he’s like. He always wants to be on top of his stuff. The details, the execution, the competitor – that’s who he is and that’s why he’s a very good player.”

McKinney’s mentality would make the legendary Vince Lombardi proud.

“I’m constantly trying to chase perfection,” he said. “I may never be able to reach it, but for me, I’m just trying to find ways that I can improve immediately (snaps fingers). Even in college, the spring game, right after that game or whatever, I would go to film and rewatch everything just to keep it fresh in my mind and get those corrections early.

“That way, when we go back and watch with the coaches, we’ve already watched it, so you go over the same thing. If you look at something 10 different times, you’ll find 10 different things you can improve your game on. That’s how I see it and how I proceed.”

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