The 5 O’Clock Club – UDFA Spotlight: OL Tim McKay

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The Commanders signed 10 undrafted college free agents following the conclusion of April’s draft. Over the next few weeks, I’ll try to introduce them individually in a series of spotlight articles.

We’ll begin today with a 6’4”, 312 pound offensive right guard from NC State, Tim McKay.

Here’s a pre-draft assessment written by Ryan Fowler of the Draft Network:

As a run blocker, McKay fires off the snap well and has displayed sound usage of his hands. His upper half fires into contact, but his placement has room for improvement as his strike zone has room to move inward. McKay can often look to latch his hands on the outside of opponents’ shoulder pads rather than inside their chest plate. Good lower half to drive at contact, but his overall strength and displacement ability are lacking. Average athlete but has experience pulling from a variety of spots up front. Fun to watch on short down and distances where he plays with an extra chip on his shoulder to move the pile. Does a nice job of keeping blockers in front and will rarely dip his head to generate more force.

In pass pro, McKay showcases active feet but is a limited athlete at this point in his evaluation—a trait that will ultimately limit his potential role to guard moving to the next level. He’s best countering speed rushers, where McKay can shuffle and slide with varying body types that look to threaten either his inside or outside shoulder (Notre Dame). Reacts to power rushers well, and his anchor could be classified as above average due to his ability to maintain balance after contact. He’s not an overwhelmingly powerful lineman, but McKay utilizes his hands well in pass pro to present a good base for success.

Concerns remain about his ability against more athletic and nuanced defenders. McKay can quickly run into trouble against even the most adequate of opposing talent if he isn’t able to establish leverage early. McKay operates with mostly a solid base and has displayed good footwork, but he can be overzealous at times leading to undisciplined striking and inconsistent mechanics.

Overall, McKay’s versatility remains an intriguing trait, and he should be a player to keep an eye on in the latter portions of the draft for teams in need of positional flexibility along an offensive line.

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NC State IOL Tim McKay is a name to remember in the 2025 NFL Draft

NC State RG Timothy McKay before North Carolina game

McKay is a true STUDENT-athlete

Per an NC State website: Graduating with a degree in Business Administration in 2022, McKay continued his studies at NC State, earning a master’s degree in management-marketing analytics.

Two-time ACC All-Academic Football Team (2022, 2023); McKay is a six-time ACC Academic Honor Roll honoree. In 2022, he won the NFF University Scholar-Athlete Award, made the Dean’s List twice, and was Named a Wolfpack “Scholar-Baller” every semester of Undergrad and Graduate school. He maintained at least a 3.5 GPA every semester in Undergrad & Graduate.

McKay was a 3-time semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy®, college football’s premier scholar-athlete award. Launched in 1959, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards Presented by Fidelity Investments were the first initiative in history to grant postgraduate scholarships based on both a player’s academic and athletic accomplishments.

A good college right guard with NFL potential

McKay’s flexibility showed up throughout a heavy workload during his collegiate career. The 6-foot-4, 312-pounder played 425 snaps at right guard and 441 at tackle in 2023, per Pro Football Focus.

Those numbers made it seem as though McKay was still searching for his best spot. A search that appeared to come to an end in 2024, when he took 726 snaps at right guard and only 40 on the edge. McKay played 1,088 snaps at right guard over the last two seasons and projects to play the position at the NFL level.

Per PFF, during his senior season at NC State in 2024, McKay finished with a 70.5 overall rating, including a 73.1 grade as a pass blocker and 69.8 as a run blocker.

He allowed just 18 total pressures and two sacks in 2024 after not allowing a sack during the 2023 campaign.

Unfortunate injury

Unfortunately for McKay, he tore a pectoral muscle while doing the bench press at his pro day ahead of the draft.

I have no idea how severe his injury was, but the typical recovery time for an NFL player with a pec injury ranges between 3-6 months. This time frame seems to allow for the possibility that he will be ready to participate at the start of training camp in late July, but Dan Quinn has proven himself to be pretty conservative with injury management, especially in the offseason, so we could see McKay open up camp on the NFI (non-football related injury) list, especially since the Commanders should have solid depth at the guard position.

In the end, the status of his pec injury will determine how quickly McKay gets to make a good impression, but the Commanders paid him as if they expect him to make the roster. Their expectation makes sense given uncertainty behind the starting front five.

Outlook

When you look at the team’s depth at offensive guard, there may be room for a player like McKay.

• Washington is likely to field Nick Allegretti and one or two of the potential right tackle candidates (Brandon Coleman, Andrew Wylie, Josh Conerly) at guard.
• Nate Herbig is likely to make the roster as depth at guard and center.
• Sam Cosmi will almost certainly open up the season on the PUP list and may not return in 2025 following a late-January ACL tear.

Depending on how the right tackle competition shakes out, McKay could have an opportunity to spend some or all of the season providing needed depth at right guard.