Bengals get good news on the injury front during Monday practice

Game week has finally arrived for the Cincinnati Bengals, who kick off their 2023 season Sunday on the road vs. the Cleveland Browns.

On Monday, both teams held a practice session that, while not official, did present some good news for Cincinnati.

Defensive end Joseph Ossai, who reportedly suffered a high ankle sprain in the preseason finale, was in his jersey today while working on the rehab field. Though he looks doubtful to play this week, it’s still a good sign that he’s already working on the rehab field.

It’s also a good sign that the Bengals believe Ossai will return soon enough that there’s no need to place him on injured reserve, which would mean he has to miss at least four regular-season games for the Bengals.

Oh, and during his Monday press conference later, Zac Taylor made sure to note that Ossai was day-to-day and not week-to-week. So maybe he really will return sooner than expected.

Also practicing today was rookie cornerback D.J. Turner, who has been battling an injury the past few weeks. As long as he continues to practice the rest of the week, Turner should be active and playing heavy snaps on Sunday.

Finally, backup offensive lineman D’Ante Smith returned to practice. Smith has been battling a shoulder injury suffered in the preseason finale that kept him sidelined since then.

All told, Ossai was the only player on the 53-man roster or practice squad that was unable to go today. That’s as good as you can ask for in Week 1.

Meanwhile, the Browns are still without star cornerback Denzel Ward due to a concussion suffered in their preseason finale.