Brian Cushing Expected To Be Cleared To Play Next Month By Dr. James Andrews

Nick Scurfield reports:

"I’ll be cleared July 17th," Cushing said Friday at Reliant Stadium. "I’ll fly down to Pensacola and get cleared by Dr. Andrews, who was my surgeon for my knee. As far as camp goes, the first day, I’ll be out there; I’ll be in pads. As far as how much I’ll do in camp, I’m not sure yet, but I know I will definitely be doing a good amount of it, try to get a preseason game in for sure, just knock some of that rust off and be 100 percent come the first game."

Cushing is encouraged by Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, who tore his ACL and MCL in December 2011, recovered in time for the start of last season and won the NFL MVP award after rushing for a near-record 2,097 yards.

"It just shows you that it’s possible," Cushing said. "It shows you that with hard work, you can come back as good, if not better. He’s a special, special football player, and he’s kind of paved the way for all of us now. It’s going to be tough to match him, to come back and have the best year of my career yet, but it’s something that I’ve worked towards. I’ll have all the confidence in the world coming back because I know there won’t be any more reps or any more time or work that I could have put in, because I left it all out there. When I come back, I know I’ll be ready."

With Brian Cushing entering the final year of his contract, it'll be very interesting to see if the Texans make a run at getting him signed before the season starts. How he looks in training camp could be the last thing the organization needs to see before throwing big dollars at their defensive captain.