GREEN BAY – There isn't much on a football field that Xavier McKinney hasn't done six-plus years into his All-Pro career.
Putting his hand in the dirt and rushing the quarterback from a three-point stance was on that short list, though.
Until last Sunday, when the Packers safety came untouched through the B-gap to register a hit on Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott on the first third down of the game.
"That was kind of in my brain," said McKinney with a smile. "I wanted to put that on tape one time, see what my stance looked like."
Welcome to the Packers' defense under coordinator Jonathan Gannon, where anything can happen at any time and pressure may come from any level on any given play. It's up to the opposing offense to figure out the puzzle in a matter of a seconds…or wham.
Disguise and deception are required for a defense to survive in NFL waters. Gannon learned that lesson well as a defensive quality control coach with Atlanta in 2007.
Mike Zimmer was the Falcons' defensive coordinator at the time, and his defensive backs coach was Emmitt Thomas, who was Green Bay's defensive coordinator 27 years before Matt LaFleur hired Gannon for the position this past February.
Both became lifelong mentors to Gannon, who came to A-Town thinking he knew ball after spending a couple years as a student and graduate assistant at Louisville.
"I got there and I quickly found out I knew zero about football," Gannon said. "Everyone talks about affecting the quarterback – I think the brain goes to post-snap … You have to affect the quarterback pre-snap.
"If the good quarterback and the offense know what you're in before the ball is snapped, you're going to get fired. That's always stuck with me because offenses are too good, play-callers are too good. They have the answers."
Zimmer often is credited with the popularization of double A-gap blitzes, which featured linebackers lining up over the shoulders of the center and guards.
The evolution of that look has more and more coordinators positioning their defensive players near the line of scrimmage to not give away the post-snap plan – Who's rushing? Who's dropping? What will the coverage be?
The other defensive tenet for Gannon is "players, not plays," and determining how to tailor the scheme to maximize the strength of the talent. One thing Gannon quickly identified after being hired was the strength and depth of the Packers' safety room.
A DB coach by trade, Gannon saw the potential and versatility of McKinney and 2024 draft picks Evan Williams and Javon Bullard, the team's starting nickel cornerback the past two years.
Gannon felt there was a lot he could do with the trio from a deception standpoint based on their talent and football IQ. As the offseason progressed, the three safeties began playing in that sandbox themselves, bringing ideas to each other, Gannon and passing game coordinator Bobby Babich.
"There's a strength and a stress to each call. You've got to try to hide it as much as you can," Gannon said. "When you do that, at times, you're going to align your people in certain places that makes their job hard. But it's for the overall good of defense.
"You need to try to weave that in as much as you can, and our guys I understand that. 'X' is a great one with that. Not to get too into the nuts and bolts of it, but he has some really good ideas."
McKinney has been a communicator his entire career whether he was at Alabama, the New York Giants or quarterbacking Jeff Hafley's Packers defense the past two years.
Anytime he's had a new defensive coordinator, McKinney has been proactive in establishing a relationship from the moment that individual steps into the building. He's had a blast blending Gannon's schematic concepts with his vision on the back end.
"The greatest teams, greatest defenses, greatest offenses are able to communicate with each other and able to bounce ideas," McKinney said. "If I see something, I want to be able to tell J.G., or 'E' sees something, he wants to be able to tell J.G. … And it's like, alright, he takes our input as well, because he knows what we mean to the team and the defense. I think having that open line of communication is always great for teams that want to be great and that want to get to the finish line or past the finish line."
The early returns have been promising. The Packers currently lead the league with nine interceptions, two more than they had in 17 games last season and two more than any other NFL team through the first six weeks of the 2026 campaign.
McKinney, who had just two INTs a year ago, is tied for the league lead with three and credits the disguise woven into Gannon's defense for the second of his two picks against Chicago two weeks ago.
Williams said likewise after picking off Dak Prescott during Sunday's 23-13 win over the Cowboys. The third-year safety started the play near the line of scrimmage before floating back in coverage and flashing in front of a pass intended for CeeDee Lamb in the red zone.
"First of all, great call by J.G., kind of put me in a great position to go get that one," Williams said. "I think I saw Dak point at me, which typically is a tell that either the back is coming to me or they're going to slide, which is a good thing because I knew that I was dropping in coverage on that play.
"Once I got that, I was able to bounce out. I saw CeeDee at three (receiver), he's normally a hot route type of guy that Dak is looking for, especially in that high red (area). Got out and really instincts kind of took over."
The defense has needed to think outside the box this season without All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons, who's yet to return to practice after tearing his ACL last December. What's more, the Packers have lost linebacker Edgerrin Cooper and defensive tackle Javon Hargrave to season-ending Achilles tears.
Ingenuity has helped Green Bay overcome their collective absence, which will be tested again on Sunday when it travels to face the Detroit Lions and quarterback Jared Goff, who has yet to throw an INT this season.
The obvious carrot for the Packers is getting Parsons back at some point. But in the meantime, the defense knows it must keep building on its strong start to the Gannon era in Green Bay.
"Obviously the potential could be very special, but we know we still gotta go out there and put in the work," McKinney said. "I think we all understand that. For us, we want to keep making sure that we're getting better each and every day, so when (Parsons) does come back, it's gonna be scary."
