Zac Taylor confirms Joe Flacco’s reported injury and the Bengals’ plans at quarterback this week
Flacco may not practice at all this week for the Bengals.
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco is dealing with an AC joint sprain, as first reported by NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport.
Flacco suffered the injury during Cincinnati’s loss to the New York Jets in Week 8. The 40-year old QB went to the locker room to get checked out, but returned for the final drive of the game without missing any snaps.
The injury will cause this week to be different for the Bengals as Flacco’s status for Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears is up in the air. It all starts with the upcoming week of practice, in which Flacco will miss some time.
Joe Flacco’s injury and status for Week 9
Cincinnati head coach Zac Taylor, who said Flacco had a “shoulder issue” Monday, confirmed to reporters that Flacco will not practice Wednesday, and essentially labeled him as a coin-flip to play against Chicago.
“We’ll see what we can potentially get out of him tomorrow,” Taylor said of Flacco. “So we’ll just work through the week. I think right now, it’s probably got a 50-50 [chance] on on what it’ll end up on Sunday.”
Taylor and the Bengals do not want to have Flacco practicing with his shoulder injury if it negatively impacts his chances of making his fourth start this weekend. That he was able to play with minimal practice time right before his debut in Week 6 gives Taylor confidence he can suit up against the Bears without having to practice at all.
“You’ve seen what he’s done,” Taylor said. “Came and played on a Thursday after three days of practice. So I think if anybody in this league can get by with mental reps right now, it’s him.
“We’ve got a plan in place to see what we can do physically during the week.”
If Flacco can’t play, Jake Browning would make his first start since being benched for Flacco after Week 5. Browning started three games following Joe Burrow’s turf toe injury. He helped lead Cincinnati to a victory in the game Burrow got hurt, but lost all three full games he’s played in. The Bengals are 1-2 under Flacco.
Flacco will be a DNP for Wednesday’s practice with Browning getting all the reps. We’ll see if Thursday is the same story.
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