Tag: Benardrick McKinney

Texans coach Bill O’Brien calls Will Fuller, Benardrick McKinney ‘day-to-day’

Houston Texans coach Bill O’Brien says that Will Fuller and Benardrick McKinney are “day-to-day” with their respective injuries.

Injuries are piling up for the Houston Texans. However, according to their coach, Bill O’Brien, they may not be as bad as perceived.

On early Monday, the rumor mill flooded with information of wide receiver Will Fuller’s groin injury, which he suffered in Saturday’s 23-20 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that he will be out for three weeks.

O’Brien, on the other hand, does not use the same diction. The coach said on Monday, after the report, that the wide receiver is “day-to-day.”

“I think he’s making progress and I would say right now that’s just a day-to-day. I wouldn’t be able to answer what’s going to happen on Sunday but I think he’s definitely making progress.”

That does not mean that Fuller will play on Sunday against the Tennessee Titans. Considering his injury history it should be a guarantee that he doesn’t. He has either missed or not finished six games in 2019. The Texans will likely use Kenny Stills in his No. 2 role while he is out.

Whether or not that means Fuller will be available for the first round of the playoffs is unknown. On the season, he has 49 receptions for 670 yards and three touchdowns.

2018 Pro Bowl inside linebacker Benardrick McKinney suffered a concussion in Week 15’s win over the Tennessee Titans. He did not play in the contest against Tampa Bay on Saturday.

Similar to Fuller, McKinney is day-to-day, according to O’Brien.

“Both of those guys are making progress,” O’Brien said. “Relative to Sunday, I’d say both of those guys are in the day-to-day category.”

McKinney has tallied 101 combined tackles, four tackles for loss and three pass deflections. He wears the green dot on his helmet, indicating that he relays defensive play calls and adjustments to the defense.

While O’Brien calls the two starters day-to-day, officially injury reports will indicate whether or not that is true.

Texans-Buccaneers final injury report: ILB Benardrick McKinney out

The Houston Texans released their last injury report for Week 16 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and inside linebacker Benardrick McKinney is out.

The Houston Texans released their final injury report ahead of their Week 16 encounter with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Saturday at noon CT at Raymond James Stadium.

Inside linebacker Benardrick McKinney and outside linebacker Jacob Martin were ruled out for the game, and did not participate in practice for the third day in a row.

Did not participate
ILB Benardrick McKinney Concussion OUT
OLB Jacob Martin Knee OUT

The Texans’ players that were listed as limited participants in Friday’s practice subsequently got the questionable designation..

Limited participation
WR Will Fuller Hamstring QUESTIONABLE
RB Carlos Hyde Ankle QUESTIONABLE
RB Taiwan Jones Hamstring QUESTIONABLE
OLB Brennan Scarlett Achilles/shoulder QUESTIONABLE
S Jahleel Addae Achilles QUESTIONABLE
Full participation

Houston had some positive news with receiver DeAndre Hopkins and tight end Darren Fells listed as full participants, and both did not receive any designations for Saturday, which is as “probable” as it gets on a post-probable injury report.

WR DeAndre Hopkins Illness
TE Darren Fells Hand

For the Buccaneers, NT Beau Allen (ankle), WR Chris Godwin (hamstring), and TE Tanner Hudson (concussion) were limited participants and declared out for Saturday’s game.

CB Carlton Davis (ankle), OT Donovan Smith (ankle/knee), C Ryan Jensen (elbow), and QB Jameis Winston (right thumb/knee) were all listed as questionable.

For more information on Tampa Bay’s injuries, visit the Bucs Wire.

Texans-Buccaneers Wednesday injury report: ILB Benardrick McKinney not practicing

The Houston Texans released their Wednesday injury report for Week 16 versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and ILB Benardrick McKinney did not practice.

The Houston Texans released their Wednesday injury report ahead of their Week 16 encounter with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Saturday at noon CT at Raymond James Stadium.

Pro Bowl inside linebacker Benardrick McKinney was out as he is in the concussion protocol.

Did not participate
ILB Benardrick McKinney Concussion
OLB Jacob Martin Knee
S Jahleel Addae Achilles
Limited participation
TE Darren Fells Hand
WR Will Fuller Hamstring
RB Carlos Hyde Ankle
RB Taiwan Jones Hamstring
OLB Brennan Scarlett Achilles/shoulder

Receivers Chris Godwin and Mike Evans, both battling hamstring injuries, did not participate for the Buccaneers in their practice. For more information, visit the Bucs Wire.

Will Texans ILB Benardrick McKinney play versus the Buccaneers?

Houston Texans linebacker Benardrick McKinney has a “chance” to play in Week 16 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, says Bill O’Brien.

Houston Texans inside linebacker Benardrick McKinney suffered a concussion late in the team’s 24-21 win over the Tennessee Titans Sunday afternoon at Nissan Stadium.

The head injury could put the 2015 second-round pick in jeopardy of missing his first game since his rookie year. The Texans will travel to Tampa Bay to face the Buccaneers on Saturday.

Texans coach Bill O’Brien believes there is a chance McKinney starts in his 71st consecutive game Saturday. Reports after the win in Nashville indicated to O’Brien he would have his Pro Bowl linebacker.

“I don’t know yet, relative to his morning, where we are at with that,” O’Brien said on Monday. “But, just from the reports after the game, I think we’ve got a chance there.”

Before McKinney can play, he has to pass the concussion protocol. He last suffered a concussion on Oct. 18, 2015, which ultimately caused him to miss two games.

The former Mississippi State Bulldog is a leader for the Texans’ defense. On the season, he has 102 combined tackles and four tackles for loss.

Texans ILB Benardrick McKinney suffers concussion in 24-21 win over the Titans

Houston Texans inside linebacker Benardrick McKinney suffered a concussion in the team’s contest with the Tennessee Titans.

Houston Texans inside linebacker Benardrick McKinney came off the field with 2:46 during the team’s 24-21 win over the Tennessee Titans Sunday afternoon at Nissan Stadium.

The Texans’ PR staff announced that McKinney suffered a concussion. They ruled him out for the rest of the AFC South divisional contest.

McKinney was slow to get up after splitting a tackle on Titans tight end Jonnu Smith with safety Tashaun Gipson. After the training staff attended to him, he hobbled onto the sideline and into the Texans’ locker room.

Backup Peter Kalambayi replaced McKinney following the injury.

McKinney, a Pro Bowler in 2018, is an outstanding run-stuffer for the Texans and has the “green dot” on his helmet, signifying that defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel relays the adjustments and play-calls to him.

Before suffering the injury, McKinney had tallied nine combined tackles, a half-sack and a quarterback hit. Entering the highly-anticipated matchup, the inside linebacker had recorded 93 combined tackles and four tackles for loss on the season.

Texans linebackers dress for ‘DodgeBall’ against the Broncos

Houston Texans linebackers wore outfits from the 2004 film “DodgeBall” in their pregame warmups.

One of the traditions for the 2019 season has been for the Houston Texans’ linebacking corps to wear outfits in pregame warmups that pay homage to pop culture. Last week, they dressed as the SWAT team. A week before that, it was as Mortal Kombat characters from the legendary video game from the 1990s.

Ahead of their Week 14 tilt with the Denver Broncos, Houston’s linebackers came out dressed as the characters from “DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story,” the 2004 film starring Vince Vaughn and Ben Stiller. Inside linebacker Benardrick McKinney was also pushing fellow linebacker Dylan Cole in a wheelchair. The third-year pro tore his ACL in Week 12 versus the Indianapolis Colts.

According to McKinney, the unit gets together on Friday and decides what they are going to do.

“We don’t think about that until, like, Friday,” McKinney told reporters after the club’s 28-22 win over the New England Patriots in Week 13. “We just got a lot of guys with creativity that come up with it.”

Texans ILBs Benardrick McKinney, Zach Cunningham ‘playing as good as anyone’ in NFL

Houston Texans head coach Bill O’Brien says inside linebackers Benardrick McKinney and Zach Cunningham make for one of the NFL’s best duos.

Without J.J. Watt (injured reserve) and Jadeveon Clowney (trade to Seattle Seahawks), the Houston Texans’ defense needed to see productivity out of the rest of their front-seven. The two inside linebackers that played behind the two are doing just that.

Benardrick McKinney, a Pro Bowler in 2018, and Zach Cunningham, the team’s leader in tackles in 2018 (107), have emerged as one of the NFL’s better duos at the position.

“The inside backers are playing as good as anybody in the league,” said Texans coach Bill O’Brien on Wednesday. “I mean, B-Mac (McKinney) and Zach are really having good years.”

McKinney — who wears the “green dot,” indicating that he calls defensive plays and adjustments — has amassed 79 combined tackles, four tackles for loss, three quarterback hits, two pass deflections and a half-sack in 2019. According to Pro Football Reference, he has lowered his missed tackle rate by 3.9%.

Cunningham sits 10th in the NFL in total tackles (95). He has five tackles for loss, a pass deflection, quarterback hit and sack to boot. The third-year linebacker leads the Texans in tackles. Like McKinney, he has cut down on his missed tackles, dropping his rate by 2.2%.

“They’re very active, they’re very physical, very athletic,” said O’Brien. “Both are a little bit different in what they do, but — and I think that’s really important in this game.”

McKinney and Cunningham make for one of the NFL’s elite run-stuffing duos. The two take turns blitzing through multiple gaps. However, they aren’t quite widely considered to be the NFL’s best duo, in large part due to their coverage abilities.

McKinney and Cunningham have allowed 129.2 and 103.9 passer ratings in coverage in 2019, respectively, per PFR. Quarterbacks have thrown a 90.3% completion rate McKinney’s way, while Cunningham has allowed an 80% and 229 of 233 total receiving yards after the catch.

The two have shown improvement as coverage linebackers in 2019. If they can continue to build on it, the 27-year-old McKinney and 24-year-old Cunningham may grow from a very good pairing to an elite one.

Texans must tighten up their tackling against the Ravens

To beat the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, the Houston Texans will need to have sound tackling from the defense, according to Bill O’Brien.

If the Baltimore Ravens can make someone slip, they will. Lamar Jackson, Marquise Brown, Mark Ingram, Willie Snead and Mark Andrews have torched defenses all season long with the ball in their hands.

On Sunday, Nov. 17, the Houston Texans will witness the slippery Ravens as they face them in Maryland at noon CT. The NFL’s top-ranked rush-offense (197.2 yards per game), Baltimore is capable of giving the Texans problems. Houston can negate that with sound-tackling and clean play.

“If you look at the games, whether it was the NFL or college, I do think that these games are coming down to mistakes – turnovers, bad tackling, penalties,” said coach Bill O’Brien on Monday.

The Texans are eighth in the NFL in missed tackles (68), as of Nov. 9, per Pro Football Reference. They have allowed the NFL’s most yards after the catch (1,205). That has to change against the Ravens.

O’Brien has three names in mind who will help the Texans’ tackling woes: Safety Justin Reid and inside linebackers Benardrick McKinney and Zach Cunningham.

“So, I think any time you have guys that can tackle, which Justin (Reid) can do. We have guys that can tackle – (Benardrick) McKinney and Zach (Cunningham) and all the other guys out there,” said O’Brien. “We feel like we have a pretty good tackling team. I think that’s important, especially against a team like this.”

Reid, McKinney, and Cunningham have combined for 176 total tackles to 19 missed tackles on the year. They are not the problem. However, they also aren’t the entire solution for containing the Ravens’ defense. The three are second-level defenders.

To truly contain the electric Ravens’ offense, Houston must play with sound gap-control upfront while simultaneously setting the edge consistently. It won’t be easy without J.J. Watt.

However, that’s football. Adapt and survive or perish; it’s as simple as that.