“I made a promise to her and I stuck to it” When Takk McKinley made a touching tribute to his late grandmother after getting drafted


“I made a promise to her and I stuck to it” When Takk McKinley made a touching tribute to his late grandmother after getting drafted

Takk McKinley

When Takk McKinley was drafted with the 26th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons, he honored his late grandmother in a passionate way.

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After getting drafted, McKinley spent 4 years with the Falcons and played in 60 games, starting 27 of them. In total, he racked up 17.5 sacks, 79 tackles, and 22 tackles for loss. While he certainly showed promise in Atlanta, injuries in 2019 and 2020 shortened his season and eventually prompted them to move on from him.

Takk McKinley
Takk McKinley

McKinley found himself with the Cleveland Browns for 2021 where he only managed to play 11 games and had 2.5 sacks. Now McKinley is a free agent looking to find himself a team.

With the NFL Draft fast approaching, the NFL occasionally posts iconic moments from previous drafts and they did so recently with Takk McKinley.

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Related: “It was the right thing to do,” Falcons owner Arthur Blank defends pursuit of Deshaun Watson amidst sexual assault investigation

Takk McKinley honors his late grandmother at the Draft

Takk McKinley
Takk McKinley

The NFL posted the moment when Takk McKinley got drafted and he came out holding a picture of his grandmother and was heard saying “This is what we do it for! I made a promise to her and I stuck to it! I told her before she passed away that I was gonna live my dream! I was gonna go D1! I was gonna get out of Oakland! I was gonna go to the NFL! I made that promise to her, 30 seconds later she passed away. This is who I do it for!”

Takk McKinley certainly lived up to the promise of making it to the NFL. Unfortunately, he’s yet to make a real mark with a franchise but luckily is just 26 years old and still has time to turn into a star. From here on out he just needs to find a way to remain healthy.

Also read: “It’ll be good to have an offseason that’s normal” – Brian Daboll says he’s bored of talking to players through computer screens

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