Drew Sample having knee surgery and is out indefinitely

The Cincinnati Bengals have lost tight end Drew Sample to a knee injury that will sideline him indefinitely.

During his Wednesday press conference, head coach Zac Taylor announced that Sample will undergo knee surgery and be sidelined for several months.

Sample left Sunday’s loss to Dallas with a knee injury and did not return.

This is a brutal break for Sample, who is in the final year of his rookie deal after being a second-round pick out of Washington in 2019, Taylor’s first draft class. Since then, Sample has appeared in 44 games (25 starts) while primarily being a blocking tight end.

Outside of his 2020 season of 40 grabs for 349 yards and one score across 16 games, Sample has rarely been a factor in the passing game, having a combined 18 catches in his other three seasons, including just two catches for -2 yards this year.

According to PFF, Sample has earned grades of 55.8 in 2019, 61.4 in 2020, 59.0 in 2021, and a 52.3 mark thus far in 2022.

Now that Sample is out for the foreseeable future, look for the Bengals to add another tight end to either the 53-man roster or the practice squad.