Cincinnati Bengals practice against the Chicago Bears was on a media blackout on Thursday, so word of injuries didn’t go public until after the entire session had finished.
It turns out the Bengals suffered two major injuries during the joint practices, with Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic reporting that offensive tackle D’Ante Smith and running back Chris Evans left the field on carts with air casts on their legs.
The injury setbacks are big news for both positions. Tackle depth has already been seriously strained with the injury to first-round rookie Amarius Mims.
At running back, Evans had a shot to push Trayveon Willaims as the third back behind Zack Moss and Chase Brown. If he misses serious time, rookies such as Elijah Collins will get a chance to earn those roster spots.