Cincinnati Bengals waive Takk McKinley after failing his physical

Well, so much for the Bengals replacing Carlos Dunlap with Takk McKinley 

Takk McKinley was looking for a new home following his departure from the Atlanta Falcons. One week later, he’ll still be looking for a new place to resurrect his career.

According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Cincinnati Bengals are waiving the defensive end after failing his physical earlier this week. McKinley was claimed off waivers by Cincinnati last after being let go by the Falcons earlier this month.

McKinley’s limited production in 2020 isn’t helping his bust status as the season comes to a close. The former first-rounder only played in four games, registering eight total tackles, seven quarterback hits this and a sack. Prior to his release from Atlanta, he had missed the past two games with a groin injury.

It seems as if McKinley’s time in Atlanta was bound to end on a sour note. Days after tweeting the team would not trade him, McKinley tweeted the franchise turned down fifth and sixth-round draft pick offers from multiple teams despite his request to be moved at the trade deadline.

Is there a market for a McKinley moving forward?

First-round picks really have to struggle to not receive a second chance in a new location. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Raiders, Browns and 49ers all put in bids for McKinley’s services following his release this month. Due to the waiver wire order, Cincinnati was rewarded McKinley for the remainder of the season.

Overall, McKinley is best served as a situational pass rusher to this point in his career. Playing in 45 total games with the Dirty Birds, the 6-foot-2 defender tallied 79 career tackles 17.5 sacks and 45 quarterback hits. His best season came in 2018 in which he tallied 15 tackles and seven total sacks.

Depending on how much a failed physical matters, perhaps one of the few teams that were interested in McKinley could bring him in before the season’s end. It seemed according to past tweets, McKinley was never a fan of joining a struggling franchise like Cincinnati. Sometimes it’s about fit for a player to be successful and maybe in a new city, McKinley can be a quality pass rusher for the remainder of 2020 and beyond.