Injuries lead to more change on Bengals O-line
CINCINNATI (AP) — Right guard Alex Cappa rolled around the Bengals locker room on a scooter on Wednesday. He had his elevated left ankle wrapped tight with white tape.
Left tackle Jonah Williams wore a soft brace on his left leg after dislocating his kneecap last weekend.
Right tackle La’el Collins has been out since he tore the ACL in his left knee in a game on Christmas Eve.
A Cincinnati offensive line that was so consistent in November and December will have a different look when the Bengals visit the Buffalo Bills for a divisional playoff game Sunday.
The Bengals hope it will be a smooth transition. Protecting quarterback Joe Burrow is critical in Cincinnati’s pass-heavy offense.
Hakeem Adeniji, who struggled in pass protection during the postseason last year, has started at right tackle since Collins went down. Max Scharping, who was claimed off waivers from Houston before the season, has slotted in for Cappa at right guard.
Jackson Carman, who was a starter off and on during his rookie year, has been pushed into service at left tackle.
“This whole year I’ve been working hard on all four (offensive line) positions, and when my number is called, I’m ready to go out there and perform,” said Carman, who played tackle at Clemson but was converted to guard after the Bengals drafted him in the second round in 2021.
Offensive coordinator Brian Callahan said he’s not overly concerned about the new starters coalescing. It helps that Burrow has become more adept at avoiding the pass rush than last year when he was the most sacked quarterback in the NFL.
“I wouldn’t say it’s overly disruptive,” Callahan said. “I mean those guys still know what we’re doing and how we’re doing it. You are mindful, especially when guys come in off the bench. It’s always a little bit trickier when they do that.”
“We got to find a way came from that. And I think right now, we need to focus on the positives.” ORCHARD PARK, The positives are nuN.Y. (AP) — Damar merous, and start with Hamlin is back on his Hamlin back home a feet, and that’s upliftweek after being reing enough in allowing leased from the hospital. coach Sean McDermott There’s also the outpourand the Buffalo Bills to ing of support Hamlin focus on their immedireceived in the wake of ate future rather than an his sudden collapse. emotional past in preparAnd McDermott 12:33 to play. He aping to host the Cincinbelieves the passing of peared upset after a no- nati Bengals in an AFC time — and the chance call on what he thought divisional playoff on to return to the field to was a Buckeyes foul and Sunday. play the following two exploded when WilIn some three weeks weekends — helped helm Breidenbach was time, the Bills — and the ease whatever emotional called for an moving Bengals for that matter,
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by the safety’s remarkMcDermott said, followNebraska has played able recovery. ing a season-ending 35- the nation’s toughest “I think the guys are 23 win over the Patriots schedule according to in a good spot,” McDertwo weeks ago. the NCAA’s NET rankmottsaid on Wednesday “When you can go ings and 10 of its 19 in noting Hamlin has through your life 48 games this season have made regular visits to the years and not really have been against Quad 1 opBills facility this week. an experience like that, ponents. “As he continues to and then that happens, UP NEXT improve, I think that you know that God’s Ohio State returns certainly helps,” McDerreal,” he added. “And you home to play Iowa on mottadded. “That expeknow that there’s power Saturday rience, we’ll carry with in prayer and miracles do
Nebraska hits the us, and there’s a chalhappen.” road to take on Penn lenge to that. But there’s McDermott
State on Saturday also a lot of good that Hamlin is not said attending team meetings, but taking what he called “a baby step at time” in re-establishing a normal routine by “just kind of dipping his toe back in here and getting on the road to just getting back to himself.”
The mood this week in Cincinnati was similarly upbeat after the Bengals were also left stunned by the sight of Hamlin collapsing after making what appeared to be a routine tackle of receiver Tee Higgins in the first quarter.
“To see Damar getting healthier as time passes and see where it ended up, there is always going to be a strong connection between these two organizations, and that’s a good thing,” coach Zac Taylor.
Now it’s a matter of two teams who bonded on the field and in the locker rooms in a time of crisis by agreeing the Week 17 game could not proceed, essentially picking up where they left off. Rather than having the AFC’s top-seed hanging in the balance as it was supposed to be on
Jan. 2, the stakes are even higher.
“It means there’s a ticket to the AFC championship on the line. That’s what this game means, and I don’t think there’s anything more that needs to be said about that,” Bengals center Ted Karras said. “It was shocking circumstances that happened when they were here. I’m glad everything worked out great. ... Now it’s a win or go home scenario.”
It’s a little more personal for the Bills, but center Mitch Morse believes the team can move on.
“Exponentially, yeah, it helps. There’s a lot of reprieve from seeing him and carrying conversations,” Morse said of Hamlin’s interactions with his teammates. “I think a few guys are still coming down emotionally, like catching up on their rest and stuff. For me, personally, I can only speak for myself, it’s subsided a bit.”
Bills safety Jordan Poyer is looking forward to the challenge.
“I don’t think it should be any different than any other game that we’ve been in,” Poyer said. “Two really good teams that want to win. It’s the playoffs. And so we’re expecting a really great atmosphere, and we’re excited for the opportunity. ”
one issue facing both teams involves game-planning, and whether to go with a similar approach as three weeks ago. The Bills only had one possession, which ended with a field goal. The Bengals, who led 7-3 on Joe Burrow’s 14-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Boyd, were on their second offensive series and led 7-3 when the game was called off.
“I think you’ve got to be careful about digging too much, trying to uncover this or that, because we spent a lot of time prior to our last game,” Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier said. “You have to be carful of over-thinking it, over-analyzing it giving the players too much, and you end up not playing your best football.”