Bengals bring back Jacques Patrick, place Elijah Holyfield on I.R.

The first injury of Cincinnati Bengals happened when running back Elijah Holyfield suffered a leg injury Wednesday afternoon. A day later, the team has brought back a familiar name to their backfield.

The Bengals have signed running back Jacques Patrick and have placed Holyfield on the Reserved/Injured list.

Patrick originally joined the Bengals back in 2020, fresh off his brief stint in the XFL. He spent the 2020 season on the practice squad.

In 2021, Patrick stayed with the team throughout the offseason, but was waived at final cuts for the second year in a row. After spending two weeks on the Bengals’ practice squad, the San Francisco 49ers signed him to their active roster, where he would remain until November 2nd.

Per Cincinnati.com’s Charlie Goldsmith, Patrick is rocking the No. 39 jersey. He wore No. 31 last year during training camp and preseason action.

Having been with the team for most of the last two years, Patrick was an easy choice to bring back with an opening behind the Bengals’ main crop of running backs. Many fans thought Patrick had a great chance of making last year’s Week 1 roster. Now he has another opportunity to make it through final cuts.

Holyfield, a second-year player, spent nearly all of last season on the Bengals’ practice squad and signed a futures deal with the team this offseason. The specifics of his injury are unknown, but him ending up on I.R. is not a great sign for him.