Benardrick

McKinney

McKinney was traded from Houston to Miami in the offseason but was unable to make the Dolphins’ roster. He started 77 games for the Texans from 2015-2020 but was limited to just four games because of a shoulder injury in his final campaign with the team. Rapsheet noted that he’ll be signing with the practice squad but the plan is for him to get promoted to the active roster once he is up to speed. McKinney offers New York some depth at interior linebacker, where the Giants previously lost Blake Martinez to a torn ACL.

Acquired from the Texans in March, McKinney was running as a starter the first few weeks of camp before fading. His releases comes even after his contract was restructured in extremely team-friendly terms. Headed into his age-29 campaign, McKinney was limited to four games by a shoulder injury last season. The Dolphins will move forward with Jerome Baker and Elandon Roberts at inside ‘backer. McKinney’s experience will probably make him a regular on the workout circuit this season.

The teams are also swapping late-round picks. McKinney is coming off shoulder surgery and has been limited to 18 games the last two seasons, but this isn’t much of a salary dump for Houston, with McKinney due $28.5 million over the next three seasons and Lawson owed $20.2 million through 2022. Lawson has never been a full-time starter and took a step back with four sacks last year, though he’s two years younger than McKinney and had 18 QB hits for the second straight season. Lawson should see more early down snaps with Houston, while McKinney will step in as the starting inside linebacker next to Jerome Baker in Miami.

McKinney needs season-ending surgery on the shoulder injury that kept him out last week. It’s bad news for a struggling Texans defense that’s allowing the second most rushing yards in the league. McKinney had 37 tackles and a TFL in four games before going down. The Texans will start Tyrell Adams in place of McKinney.

Considered nothing more than a tune-up, McKinney is expected to make a full recovery ahead of next season. The former Pro Bowl selection stayed a snap hog in the middle of the field in his 14 appearances last year, recording 101 tackles and two fumble recoveries on 90 percent of the team’s defensive plays. He remains a sturdy cog behind Houston’s ferocious pass rush, missing just two of a possible 64 games over the past four seasons.

“McKinney is a guy that really understands our defense well right now,” O’Brien said. “He has got a very unique skill set, can do a lot of different things. I think he’s a guy who has improved quite a bit.” McKinney is 6'4/246 and ran a 4.65 forty with a 40 1/2" vertical. A 12-game starter as a rookie, McKinney is a candidate for a big sophomore leap if he can play all three downs.

“This guy has wonderful physical attributes: size, speed, height,” Smith said. “He’s a tremendous football player. Great instincts, you saw him coming into himself. Very productive year, he’s got another level to reach as well.” A second-round pick in 2015, McKinney played over 90 percent of the defensive snaps as a sophomore, recording 129 tackles and five sacks. A standout athlete, McKinney could take another step forward in 2017.

$3.2 million of that is guaranteed and McKinney will receive a $2.1 million signing bonus. McKinney was arguably the most athletic linebacker in this year’s draft class. He’ll be plugged into the lineup right away where he’ll start alongside Brian Cushing at inside linebacker.

He’s expected to sit out Houston’s third preseason game, but won’t miss extended time. McKinney should return before for Week 1.

McKinney is huge at 6-foot-4 and 246 pounds. He’s believed by some to be a fringe first- or second-round prospect and checks in as Rotoworld draft guru Josh Norris’ No. 4 off-ball linebacker. Pauline also reports the Broncos are eyeing McKinney. In the Rams’ 4-3, McKinney could start out at strong-side linebacker before eventually replacing overpaid and overrated MLB James Laurinaitis.