The Houston Texans will face the Los Angeles Chargers in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs on Saturday, and one of the key matchups everyone will be monitoring is the battle between Texans cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. and Chargers wide receiver Ladd McConkey.
Stingley was just named a First-Team All-Pro for his incredible efforts this season, but McConkey presents a major challenge.
Whoever wins that clash will probably end up winning the game, and McConkey spoke about Stingley during an appearance on the Kay Adams Show.
"He's a heck of a player," McConkey said. "The ball skills he has, he can play inside or outside, he follows guys around. So just to be able to have a chance to go against him and really their whole defense. ... I'm excited for the challenge."
Stingley racked up 54 tackles, five interceptions and 18 passes defended this year, which earned him a Pro Bowl selection in addition to First-Team All-Pro honors.
Meanwhile, McConkey hauled in 82 receptions for 1,149 yards and seven touchdowns, good for an average of 14 yards per catch. Not bad for a rookie.
The Chargers will be without receiver Joshua Palmer for this game and are rather limited on weapons otherwise, so if Stingley can shut down McConkey or at least contain him, it will provide the Texans with a great path toward advancing to the Divisional Round.
Houston is the underdog even though it is the home team for this affair. We'll see if Stingley and Co. can change that.
