When Takk McKinley burst around the edge at the end of the first quarter Saturday night and beat Giants tackle Evan Neal on his way to sacking quarterback Tommy DeVito, he could barely contain his excitement.
McKinley leaped to his feet and did a little celebration, feeling like he was all the way back. For McKinley, this was his first sack since 2021, when he was on the Browns.
That was before he tore his Achilles tendon. Before he bounced around practice squads and active rosters with the Titans, Rams and Cowboys but not playing a snap. And before he spent a year without a team after the Cowboys cut him in June 2023.
“It felt amazing,” McKinley said after Saturday’s 10-6 win over the Giants. “My first sack since 2021. I’m just appreciative to be out here on the field and continue to pursue my dream. I thank the Jets for giving me the opportunity. I had a lot of fun out there.”
Now, the question is whether McKinley has done enough to stick around for the regular season.
It certainly appears he should be on the 53-man roster once cuts are made over the next few days. Teams must get down to 53 players by 4 p.m. on Tuesday.
McKinley joined the Jets in June after he had a tryout at the team’s minicamp. He has had a strong training camp and, with Haason Reddick still holding out, has positioned himself to grab a spot as an edge rusher on this team.
If he does, it will be the completion of a long road back for a player who was a first-round pick of the Falcons in 2017.
“It’s been hard,” McKinley said of his journey. “I had a lot of growing up to do, self growth. Being out of football for a year and a half, if I’m honest with you, it was hard. You’ve got all this money, you’re out of the league. It’s easy to get in trouble. For me, I just stayed hungry, stayed motivated. I prayed every day. I’m just grateful that I got an opportunity.”
McKinley had 2 ½ sacks against the Giants and two tackles for loss. At one point, he celebrated by breakdancing on the field.
The Jets have a very crowded defensive line room, even without Reddick. Jets general manager Joe Douglas faces some tough choices for the roster at the position.
McKinley has shown a little more than the others, though, and should have a spot secured.
“Obviously, he’s got pedigree, right? First-round talent,” Jets coach Robert Saleh said. “Elite strain, length, speed, physicality, mindset. I’ve always said it, it just takes guys some time sometimes for one reason or another. A lot of times they have to find themselves and I feel like he’s in a really good place right now, both physically and mentally. I thought he did a really nice job during training camp.”
McKinley, 28, said the key to his performance this summer has been confidence.
“I went first round for a reason,” he said. “The NFL is the best of the best. You’ve just got to have that confidence in yourself. The Jets organization, the D line room, Quinnen Williams, Jermaine Johnson, Micheal Clemons, Will McDonald, the D line coach, they all believe in me. That gave me extra confidence to believe in myself and just let it fly. The system that we run, they let us just go. For me, it’s just go, wreak havoc. The system that we’re in, it’s just a blessing to be a part of it.”
Jets defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich played a big role in bringing McKinley to the Jets. Ulbrich recruited McKinley to UCLA and was on the Falcons staff when they drafted him.
