Projected first-round Big Ten prospect gets terrible 'long-term' injury update
Injury updates are never fun, and that's especially the case when the prognosis is bleak. Penn State suffered a huge blow entering Week 4 as head coach James Franklin announced that safety Kevin Winston Jr. has a "long-term" injury. Winston, who is often projected to be taken in the first round of the 2025 NFL […]
Injury updates are never fun, and that's especially the case when the prognosis is bleak. Penn State suffered a huge blow entering Week 4 as head coach James Franklin announced that safety Kevin Winston Jr. has a "long-term" injury.
Winston, who is often projected to be taken in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, is my No. 2 safety in the class. Franklin did not expand on how long he'd be out, but it might be safer to assume he'll miss the rest of the 2024 season based on the tone of the announcement.
Winston, who stands 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighs 208 pounds, is a junior who encountered an injury during the first quarter of the No. 10 Nittany Lions' victory over Bowling Green on September 7. He didn't make a comeback in that game.
As a preseason All-America contender, Winston was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after Penn State's opening game victory against West Virginia, recording a personal best of 12 tackles and causing a fumble.
Coach Franklin did not provide specific details about the nature of Winston’s injury or a projected timeline for his recovery.
In the 2023 season, which was his first year starting, Winston achieved impressive stats with 60 tackles, two recoveries of fumbles, one interception, and five deflections of passes. ESPN NFL draft experts Mel Kiper, Jordan Reid, and Matt Miller have all positioned Winston as their second-ranked safety prospect for the 2025 NFL draft.
