Bengals injury roundup following loss to Packers

Tyler Eifert was held out of practice last week, perhaps using his free time to daydream about playing all 16 games in a season sometime in the far away future.

Eifert has been dealing with an injury to his back, to which he had repairs done in the offseason. He missed a full week of practice leading up to practice, and is likely to miss a few more weeks while he nurses this injury.

The only other Bengal to miss the whole week’s worth of practice was tackle Trey Hopkins. Undrafted out of Texas, Hopkins made headlines this offseason when he unseated Andre Smith at the right guard position.

Unfortunately, he has not taken full advantage of his opportunity in Cincinnati. He suffered a knee injury in Week 1 against the Ravens, and has missed the last two games.

Rookie John Ross has also failed to make the most of his time in the Queen City. Dealing with a plethora of injuries himself, he has only had one NFL touch so far in 2017. The trend would continue for him as he was ruled out of Sunday’s game with an illness and a knee injury.

Backup defensive backs KeiVarae Russell and Derron Smith also missed out on the clash at Lambeau due to injury.

The one good news in the injury department for the Bengals this week was the return of Michael Johnson, who suffered a concussion against the Ravens in Week 1. Fully recovered, he was able to record three tackles against the Packers, including one of Cincinnati’s six sacks against Aaron Rodgers.

During the game, the Bengals were somewhat fortunate to escape with minimal damage. Sunday was the hottest home game in Packers history, and the players felt the full effect. As the game wore on, Vincent Rey, Shawn Williams, and Jordan Evans all required attention from the trainers to treat cramps, but were all able to return unscathed.

George Iloka left the game with a hamstring injury as well and eventually returned.

There is still no word on whether or not he will play next Sunday against the Browns.

As it stands, the Bengals look to be mostly perfectly healthy coming into Week 4. Eifert is the only player that will be out for sure. Hopkins will probably be out for quite a few weeks as well. Ross and Iloka are unknown at this point, but the Bengals will undoubtedly be able to reveal more on them as the week continues.

All things considered, the Bengals are doing fairly well concerning injuries. Let’s hope that things don’t get any worse, though. The Bengals clearly need all the help they can get.