Bengals injury update heading into offseason

With the offseason here, the Bengals’ first priority needs to be simply getting healthy.

By the time the regular season ended, the team had placed A.J. Green, Clint Boling, Cedric Ogbuehi, Tyler Eifert, Giovani Bernard, Andrew Billings, and William Jackson III on injured reserve. Other players dealing with injury included Jeremy Hill, Vontaze Burfict, Brandon LaFell, Vinny Rey, and Derron Smith, so just getting all of those guys healthy is a big focus right now.

The good news is most of those guys are well on their way to being healthy in time to begin offseason workouts, according to Bengals.com’s Geoff Hobson. He reports that Green and Eifert should be ready for OTAs when they begin in May.

Green is recovering from a hamstring injury that cost him the final six games of the regular season. Eifert is recovering from back surgery, which he had in the final week of the season. And Boling is recovering from shoulder surgery, which he also had during the final week of the season.

The biggest recovery taking place this offseason is with Bernard’s ACL, which he tore in Week 11. He had surgery shortly after, giving him about two months of recovery as of now, in what’s usually at least a six-month recovery timetable.

Hobson reports that Bernard has already been working in the weight room, though it was probably just light rehab work. Hobson also doesn’t think Bernard will do any work in OTAs and may miss the start of training camp, but has a good shot at being ready for the 2017 regular-season opener. This opinion is also shared by Dave Lapham.

That’s about the same scenario Geno Atkins went through when he tore his ACL midway through the 2013 season, only to make it back by the third preseason game the following season.

That said, I think the Bengals could play it safe and keep Bernard on PUP for at least the first few weeks of training camp, especially if they bring Rex Burkhead back and/or spend a high draft pick on a running back this year.

Elsewhere, Billings and Jackson are on pace to be cleared for workouts after their rookie seasons ended in the preseason due to injury. Billings was lost to a meniscus tear in training camp, while Jackson tore his pectoral muscle early in training camp.

Hobson also adds that the shoulder injuries suffered by Ogbuehi and Jake Fisher won’t require surgery, so they both should be good for offseason workouts. Fisher was able to play through his issue, but Ogbuehi was placed on I.R. in Week 17 due to his labrum injury.

All said, it looks like the Bengals are in a good spot with all of their injured players this offseason.