Green Bay Packers select Kalen King in 7th round of 2024 NFL Draft
The professional football dream has come true for former Penn State Nittany Lions defensive back Kalen King during the 2024 NFL Draft. The Green Bay Packers took the Detroit native with the No. 255 overall pick in the seventh round.
During his time with the Nittany Lions, King amassed three interceptions over three seasons, with his best season coming during the 2022 campaign. He was once thought of as a player who had first round potential, and he’ll be looking to get back to that level of play in the NFL.
Additionally, teams generally avoided King’s direction when playing against Penn Sate. That’s partly why his statistics aren’t as gaudy as some of the other defensive backs in his class.
Nevertheless, Kalen King certainly possesses the talent to play in the NFL. It’ll be interesting to see how his career shakes out moving forward.
Kalen King played high school football at Cass Technical (MI), where he was a four-star prospect. He was the No. 172 overall recruit in the 2021 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.
What NFL Draft analysts are saying about Kalen King
Moreover, NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein evaluated a majority of the prospects available for the 2024 NFL Draft over the last couple of months, including the former Penn State defensive back.
Zierlein believes some of King’s strengths include, “Showed ability to slow press release with his hands in 2022. Finished 2022 with 15 pass breakups and three interceptions. Opens gait and strides with long routes downfield.”
Continuing, Zierlein provided his full analysis on the former Penn State star, predicting how his NFL future will turn out.
“King’s 2022 performance was significantly better than what he put on tape in 2023, but it might not be enough to sway some evaluators,” Zierlein wrote. “King was consistently rocked out of position by route breaks over the first two levels and didn’t find the ball frequently enough with his back to the passer on deep shots. He doesn’t have the fluidity to just mirror and match routes, so he’ll need to get back to playing more physically from press to slow down route momentum.
“King is more than capable of tilting 50/50 balls in his favor when he’s in position, but finding positioning in man or zone coverages as a pro could be very challenging.”
Time will tell if Kalen King makes good on his potential, but it’s evident Lance Zierlein believes he’ll have ample opportunity to do so in the NFL.