Houston Texans: Benardrick McKinney needs to be held out of Bucs’ game

Houston Texans linebacker Benardrick McKinney could be ready to play this Saturday against the Bucs despite a concussion. What’s the latest that’s going on?

Houston Texans fans — after an absolutely awful showing against the Denver Broncos the Sunday before last, this team was able to bounce back masterfully and be able to beat a division rival in the Tennessee Titans to grab hold of the AFC South.

The deck of cards was angled in the favor of the Houston Texans, to which all they had to do was win yesterday’s game and the likelihood of them winning the division yet again in addition to playoff berth would be imminent.

Although they haven’t yet clinched the AFC South or a playoff spot, the scenario for the Houston Texans to beat the Titans twice.  With the team already having one win under their belt, this makes it a lot easier for the Texans, who own the tiebreaker over the Titans, to leapfrog their way into a berth.

It’s not over yet as they will be taking on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on the road this Saturday afternoon before taking on the Titans one more time in their season finale at NRG Stadium.

But having one of their key rush-stoppers on the field will be paramount over the next two games and that’s certainly into question with the latest news of linebacker Benardrick McKinney sustaining a concussion in yesterday’s game.

McKinney took a hard hit just before the two-minute warning in the 4th quarter yesterday and did not return to the game, especially with so little time left and the fact that he was displaying symptoms of a concussion.

He’s under the NFL’s concussion protocol so it remains to be seen if he will be out of it quick enough to play this Saturday.

Bill O’Brien hasn’t ruled out McKinney for this Saturday and here’s what he told the Chron’s Aaron Wilson:

"“I think there’s time,” Texans coach Bill O’Brien said. “I mean, we’ll have to see. I don’t know yet, relative to this morning, where we’re at with that. But just from the reports after the game, I think we’ve got a chance there.”"

Despite players typically skipping the following game to heal, the Houston Texans are actually

More from House of Houston

• Are you the 2021 FanSided Sports Fan of the Year?
• Houston Texans: 4 reasons Romeo Crennel is right coach right now
• Astros-Twins Wild Card Series: 5 things to know as MLB postseason begins
• Houston Texans: The Most Underrated Sports Drought Ever
• Houston Texans: J.J. Watt’s early case for NFL Hall of Fame

considering bringing him back off a shorter week to prepare.

So here’s the deal — the team’s medical staff knows best if McKinney is fit to play but it’s best to err on the side of caution and not have him play this Saturday.

This man has his whole career ahead of him and although he’s needed, the cost is far greater of causing permanent injury than to allow him to heal properly before his next contest.

I think the team can successfully beat the Bucs without McKinney in a non-division matchup so I don’t think it’s crucial that he has to be out on the field.

They still have 2018 sixth-round pick Peter Kalambayi and Tyrell Adams as to which both are chomping at the bit for an opportunity to stand out and shine.

He can be re-evaluated going into the Titans’ game, where he’ll be needed, to try to strike the death knell on our division rival that won’t go quietly into the good night.

Let’s see what happens!

McKinney has accumulated 102 combined tackles — 54 solos — along with 1.0 sack, four tackles-for-loss, four quarterback hits, three passes defensed and two fumble recoveries through all of his 14 starts this season.