Cincinnati Bengals star defensive end Trey Hendrickson suffered an injury against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
Hendrickson, by far the team’s MVP through the bye week, needed the help of two trainers to leave the field before heading to the blue medical tent.
Replays show that a 49ers player inadvertently stepped on Hendrickson’s ankle.
With Hendrickson out, Joseph Ossai gets the lion’s share of the snaps after being used sparingly over the first six games — he was coming back slowly from an injury suffered in the preseason finale. Cam Sample will also get looks.
Considering Hendrickson has been the only consistent pass-rusher for the team — and doing so at elite levels — losing him would be a serious long-term blow.
The team declared Hendrickson questionable.
Update: Hendrickson returned to the game after the medical checks with his ankle heavily taped, so it will be interesting to see what the snap counts look like on the Monday after.