Tyler Eifert working on rehab field during Bengals’ Friday practice

The Bengals got some positive news Friday on the Tyler Eifert injury front.

The fourth-year tight end suffered a back injury last week that not only prevented him from making his 2016 debut in Week 5, but will almost certainly sideline him in Week 6 at New England.

The injury has still not been fully disclosed, but whatever it was, it’s kept Eifert from so much as showing up at practice since then, until now. Eifert was able to get some work in on the rehab field Friday during what is essentially a walkthrough practice for the rest of the team.

While Eifert is likely out Sunday, this is a positive step in his recovery from the back injury, which he suffered after it appeared he was almost fully recovered from ankle surgery, which caused him to miss the first four games.

Last Monday, ESPN reporter Katherine Terrell reported that she saw Eifert limping in the locker room, something she had not noticed before while he was recovering from his ankle issue.

Back injuries can be a very scary and tricky thing to deal with, especially when we don’t even know exactly what it was, nor will we given the Bengals’ history of muddying the waters with injury news.

Hopefully, it’s just a slight injury that has the Bengals playing it safe and keeping him out to make sure he doesn’t injure it further.

At this point, I would not expect Eifert to play until after the Bengals’ Week 9 bye week, but that is merely speculation at this point. Seeing Eifert at least on the rehab field this week suggests he could be close to returning, but I’d expect Cincinnati to remain ultra-cautious with him.

This is the only news to report from the Bengals’ Friday practice. Be sure to check back later for the full injury, practice and participation report ahead of the team’s matchup with the Patriots.