Bengals Injury Roundup: Team stays relatively healthy after first preseason game

The Cincinnati Bengals sat almost all of their starters for their first preseason game of the 2023 season against the Packers on Friday night. The Bengals went on to lose their preseason opener by a score of 36-19, but there was a lot to be encouraged by, especially from young guys like Andrei Iosivas, Chase Brown, Dax Hill, and Tycen Anderson.

The news on the injury front was encouraging too. There were only a couple of injuries to backup players that are hopefully very minor, and all of them occurred in the first half.

Linebacker Joe Bachie left the game after a chest injury, tight end Tanner Hudson suffered a concussion, and safety Yusif Corker tweaked his hamstring. None of them returned, which is to be expected during a game that doesn’t matter.

Bachie, who re-signed with the Bengals this offseason on a one-year, $1.16 million deal, is a key member on the Bengals' special teams units and acts as a backup linebacker for Germaine Pratt and Logan Wilson. As long as he stays healthy, his experience will likely keep him on the final 53-man roster.

Hudson is fighting for a tight end roster spot behind Irv Smith Jr. and Drew Sample. He’s up against Devin Asiasi and Mitchell Wilcox for that spot, so potentially missing an extended period of time with a concussion won’t help his case.

Before he left the game, Hudson caught four passes for 29 yards and was one of the few bright spots on the sputtering offense on Friday night. He has had a solid training camp, and hopefully, his concussion is minor.

Corker spent last year on the Bengals practice squad after the undrafted free agent was released by the New York Giants. He’s hoping to carve out a spot on the team behind Dax Hill, Nick Scott, Jordan Battle, Michael Thomas, and Tycen Anderson. Corker is on the outside looking in, though, and with Anderson intercepting two passes, he could be destined for the practice squad again. However, hamstring injuries can tend to linger. Hopefully, that’s not the case here.

Stay tuned for more injury updates as the team prepares to travel for their second preseason game this Friday in Atlanta against the Falcons.