Margus Hunt was placed on the Physically Unable to Perform list this week, but he will do today's conditioning drills with the rest of the Bengals players and hopes to play during the pre-season.
Hunt hopes to play in a couple of preseason games. He'll do today's conditioning test
— Geoff Hobson (@GeoffHobsonCin) July 30, 2015
Just like Geno Atkins was placed on the PUP list to start training camp last year, and was removed just a few days later, anything is possible, and the same could happen with Hunt this year.
If Hunt wants to fight for a spot on the Bengals' 53-man roster, being able to compete in training camp and show what he can do in the pre-season would greatly help his cause.
The defensive end re-aggravated a preexisting back injury lifting weights earlier this offseason, forcing him to miss spring practices.
At the Bengals' media luncheon on Tuesday, Bengals defensive coordinator Paul Guenther expressed his confidence in Hunt, who just began playing football six years ago, while in college:
"(We need to) keep him on the field. Last year he was progressing at a high rate. Even the little things maybe you don't notice, once he went down and missed six or seven weeks it was like starting over again. Keeping him on the field and continuing to improve his technique and understanding he's made leaps and bounds that way. We just have to keep him on the field. He’s one of the guys on the cusp of maybe breaking through as a starter."