The Cincinnati Bengals will be without their up-and-coming starting cornerback for at least four weeks. The Bengals have placed Cam Taylor-Britt on injured reserve. Taylor-Britt has been dealing with a quadriceps injury since Week 8 and suffered an ankle sprain during Friday’s practice.
The Cincinnati Bengals drafted their starting cornerback in 2022
Cincinnati Bengals At Kansas City Chiefs Afc Championship Jan 29 033
The Cincinnati Bengals drafted Cam Taylor-Britt in the 2nd round, 60th overall, in the 2022 NFL Draft. He played college football at Nebraska and was the eighth cornerback selected.
Taylor-Britt missed the first six games of his rookie season because of an abdomen injury he suffered during training camp.
Taylor-Britt took over for Chidobe Awuzie, who suffered a torn ACL in Week 8. Taylor-Britt finished the season with 55 tackles, six pass deflections, and one forced fumble. He went 34/58 for 483 yards and three touchdowns, with a 102.9 passer rating in coverage.
He also had 11 tackles, one interception, and three pass deflections in three playoff starts.
He took over as the starting cornerback in his second season
Taylor-Britt entered his second season as the starting cornerback alongside Chidobe Awuzie and nickelback Mike Hilton. He has played in ten games, recording 46 tackles, four interceptions, one pick-six, ten pass deflections, and one forced fumble. He is 34/60 for 532 passing yards and three touchdowns with a 75.1 passer rating in coverage.
Cincinnati’s defense is ranked 24th in points, 7th in yards, 1st in yards per play, 8th in takeaways, 12th in 1st downs, and 13th in passing yards allowed. Losing Taylor-Britt to injured reserve will negatively impact the Bengals’ passing defense because he’s arguably their best corner, who leads the team in pass deflections and interceptions.
There are two corners that must step up in the absence of Taylor-Britt.
CB number one that must step up
Cincinnati Bengals At New York Jets Week 3
The first CB that must step up is Chidobe Awuzie. Awuzie signed a 3-year, $21.75 million contract with Cincinnati during the 2021 offseason. He appeared in 22 games in his first two seasons, recording 82 tackles, two interceptions, and 19 pass deflections.
Awuzie has appeared in ten games and made five starts this season, recording 31 tackles and three pass deflections. He is 19/31 for 252 passing yards and three touchdowns, with a passer rating of 119.3 in coverage.
Awuzie will be starting in Taylor-Britt’s spot.
CB number two that must step up
The second CB that must step up is DJ Turner. Turner was drafted in the 2nd round, 60th overall in the last draft. Turner opened his rookie season as the backup to Awuzie but has started in the last seven games. He has 25 tackles and five pass deflections. He is 20/37 for 309 yards and one touchdown, with a 90.9 passer rating in coverage.
Cincinnati has a tough remaining schedule
Cincinnati is currently in last place in the AFC North with a 5-6 record and has one of the toughest schedules in the NFL.
They play at Jacksonville today, home against Indianapolis in Week 14, home against Minnesota in Week 15, at Pittsburgh in Week 16, at Kansas City in Week 17, and home against Cleveland in their regular season finale.
Will the Cincinnati Bengals make the playoffs or have one of the worst records in the AFC?
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