CINCINNATI – The Cincinnati Bengals’ incredible run of bad luck with first-round injuries has continued with head coach Zac Taylor announcing that Amarius Mims suffered a pectoral injury in Saturday night’s preseason opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Taylor called Mims’ injury “non-surgical.”
“It’s unfortunate that he’ll miss several weeks, but we expect him to make a full recovery and be ready to roll,” Taylor said.
Bengals First-Rounder Amarius Mims To Miss Several Weeks With Pec Injury
The “several weeks” prognosis harkens back to Joe Burrow’s calf injury last year, when “several weeks” from the time of the injury was Taylor’s go-to phrase whenever questions about the quarterback arose.
When first asked whether he expected Mims to be ready for the Sept. 8 opener against the New England Patriots, Taylor leaned further into his experience from a year ago.
“I think Webster’s defines it as an indefinite number that’s more than two and fewer than many,” he said.
Does Mims’ injury jeopardize him starting Week 1?
Zac “I wouldn’t take anything off the table.”— Jay Morrison (@ByJayMorrison) August 12, 2024
Asked if it’s at least a possibility for Mims to play against the Patriots, Taylor said “I wouldn’t take anything off the table.”
Mims has looked good playing with the first-team offensive line while veteran Trent Brown had been on the non-football injury list until last week.
And Mims played well in Saturday night’s debut, logging 15 snaps — 12 with the first team on the game-opening touchdown drive and three with the second team.
“I think he’s had a really good training camp,” Taylor said. “Obviously, it’s tough that he’s not going to get some opportunities. It’s unlikely he’ll play against Chicago and Indy, obviously. I was looking forward to that.
“But the guy has addressed everything that we’ve thrown at him head on and done a great job,” Taylor continued. “He’s still got the same energetic personality. This didn’t set him back at all. Excited to see how he responds to this when he gets healthy and gets back on the field.”
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The plan was to work Brown into team drills this week anyhow, but Taylor said that Mims still would have taken first-team reps had he not been hurt.
“That times up well,” Taylor said.
If Mims is not ready for the season opener, he’ll be the team’s seventh first-round pick in the last 10 drafts to miss time as a rookie due to injury.
- 2015 – Offensive tackle Cedric Ogbuehi was in the process of ACL rehab when the Bengals drafted him No. 21 overall. He returned late in the season and played five games, mostly as a second tackle in jumbo sets.
- 2016 – Cornerback William Jackson tore a pectoral muscle in one of the first practices in training camp and missed the whole season.
- 2017 – Wide receiver John Ross was rehabbing from labrum surgery when the Bengals selected him with the No. 9 pick. He appeared in three games as a rookie with no receptions.
- 2018 – Center Billy Price tore his pectoral at the Combine before the Bengals made him pick 21. He started the first two games of the season before suffering a foot injury. He missed six games before starting the final eight of the season.
- 2019 – Offensive tackle Jonah Williams suffered a labrum tear in OTAs, and the No. 11 pick missed the entire season.
- 2020 – Quarterback Joe Burrow tore his ACL in the 10th game and missed the rest of the season.
“We’ve been in situations where we’ve had a lot worse news than this,” Taylor said. “(Mims) has done everything he can to put himself in a position to be a great player for us immediately, and this is just an extremely minor setback, short-term wise, and expect him to get a great recovery.
“And it really remains to be seen how quickly he will get back,” Taylor continued. “I don’t want to put my foot in my mouth and give you all a timeline because that’s an impossible situation to be in, but optimistic we will get him back in several weeks.”
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It’s unclear whether Brown will be up to speed enough to play Saturday at Chicago, and the depth behind him is suspect.
Backup tackle D’Ante Smith has missed the last two weeks with a knee injury but is expected to work back into practice today.
Jackson Carman, the team’s 2021 second-round pick, continues to struggle and drew four penalties against the Buccaneers.
Cody Ford has experience at tackle, but Taylor said the team still is viewing him as an interior player at this point.
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