Our List of Top 10 Safties in 2025 Draft

Here we are with our #5 ranked safety. We watched some of Winston's games from the last couple of seasons. Winston earned the starting safety job as a Sophomore in 2023.He racked up a team high 60 tackles (35 solo), 2.5 TFL's, 5 PBU's, 1 INT 2 fumble recoveries across 13 starts. In 2024 he had 13 tackles and 1 forced fumble. He got injured in the second game of this past season. Winston suffered a partially torn ACL. He had surgery performed and should be ready for on-field drills by early March. Winston decided to forgo his senior season and declare for the draft. What we learned from watching his games is that he's an exceptional tackler, he's versatile, explosive, instinctive, aggressive and has natural ball skills. He's been tabbed as a Man-Zone Slot/Nickel and also plays very well in the box. He is predicted to go in the 3rd round. He would be a 1st rounder if he hadn't gotten injured. He has a 4.45/40 time which fall into the elite speed category.

#5- Kevin Winston Jr.- (S) Penn State (6'2"/208#)

Winston is an exceptional tackler with a miniscule 2% missed tackle rate, ranking second among FBS safeties. He's a versatile defender capable of playing single-high safety, Nickel corner and off-ball linebacker. He's an explosive downhill player with excellent pursuit angles and sideline-to-sideline range. Winston is instinctive in coverage with the ability to disrupt timing at the line of scrimmage. He utilizes his length effectively to wrap up ball carries and play through receivers hands. His backpedal and fluid hip transition allows him to match up with various receiver types. He has an aggressive play style and his willing allows him to attack gaps in run support. His natural ball skills and tracking ability create turnover potential.
Winston needs to improve on his pad level when approaching contact, especially against larger ball carriers. His frame could use a little additional mass to enhance his play strength at the next level. He can occasionally be overaggressive, leading to some missed tackles or coverage lapses. He must refine his technique to avoid being too handsy in downfield coverage situations. Winton's lower body flexibility and change of direction skills have a little more room for improvement.
Winston profiles as a rangy, physical safety with the versatility to play single-high, in the box or match up against TE's. His click-and-close ability coupled with a low missed tackle rate, projects well to the next level. Winston's experience in multiple alignments at Penn State should ease his transition to NFL defensive schemes.
I believe at the combine scouts will key in on Winston's hip fluidity and backpedal due to the injury he received during this past season. That's if he even participates in the combine. His ability to turn and run with receivers will be crucial. While his instincts and football IQ are plus traits, Winston needs to add a little more mass to his frame to withstand the rigors of the pro game especially when playing in the box.
Winston has all the tool to develop into a starting NFL safety within his first two seasons. His special teams value and positional flexibility make him an attractive day two prospect. With refinement in man coverage techniques and improved play strength, Winston could emerge as a defensive signal caller and impact player in sub-packages early in his pro career.