Motivation No Problem For Kalen King

When the Green Bay Packers make a selection in an NFL draft, the public relations people will reach the player on the telephone minutes later to get his initial reaction to being the newest member of the green and gold.  Usually the player reacts with excitement and joy. 

But when the team got defensive back Kalen King on the phone shortly after taking him with one of the final picks in the entire draft, it was clear he was less than excited and joyful.  He was angry and frustrated.  “I feel like this whole experience definitely was one of the toughest things I’ve ever had to endure in my life,” he said.  

The Penn State prospect could hardly be blamed for being down in the dumps.  He knew his draft stock had fallen after a 2023 season that did not approach the excellence of the year before.  But he never expected to drop quite this far in the draft.  Brian Gutekunst got him with one of the five final compensatory picks of the entire weekend. 

This after being named second team All American in 2022, having led the Big Ten in pass break-ups.  He finished that year projected as a future first round talent. You can watch some of his career highlights here.  But in 2023 his play was mostly mediocre and pro scouts apparently dismissed his stardom the previous season as a fluke.  It didn’t help that he didn’t test well, and his RAS was under 7.0.  

 He waited all weekend for his name to be called.  Three long days.  33 cornerbacks taken ahead of him.  On day three there was a run on corners in the fifth round.  Ten of them taken in that round alone.  King listened intently as every name was called, waiting for that phone call.  It didn’t come.  Then, in the sixth round, King endured perhaps the biggest insult, when his cornerback teammate, Daequon Hardy, was picked. 

So pardon him if he was less than ecstatic when the Packers put him on the phone.  He wanted to set one thing straight to Packer fans immediately.  “Where I was drafted does not reflect the player that I am,” he stated emphatically. 

And now he gets his chance to prove it.  Motivation?  Incentive? That’s not going to be a problem for King.  “Not going where you thought you would go, seeing all the names being picked ahead of you, just enduring all that and seeing all that, I feel like it put a chip on my shoulder, a permanent chip on my shoulder that I’ve got to keep there.” 

Good.  I like players with something to prove.  So, apparently, does Gutekunst, who seemed as surprised as King himself that the player was still available as the draft was drawing to a close.  “Our league has a long history of guys who felt they were overlooked, and use that as motivation to drive themselves. Hopefully, that’ll be the case.” 

After settling down on the phone and getting his emotions under control, King, a deeply spiritual person, allowed that “God made the right choice for me. I feel like I’m in a place where I’m supposed to be and I’m happy that I got my name called.”  

He’s right about being in the right place.  The cornerback room in Green Bay has the feel of being somewhat wide open.  Jaire Alexander is the star, but the seventh year veteran’s play last year was a shadow of the force he has been in the past, and he’s been battling injuries as well.  No one knows if former first round pick Eric Stokes can regain the promising form of his rookie season following his recovery from a knee injury.  The Packers didn’t exactly give him a vote of confidence this week when they chose not to pick up his fifth year option.  

Rasul Douglas was traded away at midseason last fall.  Carrington Valentine, like King a seventh round pick, started twelve games last year and held up okay, but the Packers probably hope for better.  Ditto for re-signed free agent Corey Ballentine who started six games.  Keisean Nixon will start at the slot and Robert Rochelle is mainly a special teams guy.  The Packers added eight undrafted free agents after the draft but none of them are corners. 

So the door seems open for King if he can relocate the magic that made coaches drool over his potential in 2022.  He certainly won’t be the most famous player in off season workouts, but he may well be the most motivated.  “I feel like the Packers are going to get one of the most competitive guys in the country,” he promised.   

If that turns out to be true, he could become the biggest steal of the entire draft.