Bengals make their plans with Andrei Iosivas official, and another part of the roster gets a boost
The Cincinnati Bengals have officially placed wide receiver Andrei Iosivas on the Reserve/Injured list. Iosivas’ roster spot has been taken by linebacker Joe Giles-Harris, who has been signed off the practice squad.
The Cincinnati Bengals have officially placed wide receiver Andrei Iosivas on the Reserve/Injured list.
Iosivas, who had surgery for a torn ligament in his thumb Wednesday, will now miss at least the next four weeks. His roster spot has been taken by linebacker Joe Giles-Harris, who has been signed off the practice squad.
Tight end Tanner Hudson has also been elevated from the practice squad. He was elevated in Week 1 as well.
Bengals to go light at wide receiver without Andrei Iosivas
Cincinnati deciding not to sign one of its practice squad receivers to fill Iosivas’ roster spot means the club will have just five WRs on its 53-man roster for the time being. Rookie Noah Thomas and Jordan Moore were the practice squad options.
The Bengals played the first two weeks with just five wideouts dressed for each game. Ke’Shawn Williams was inactive for both contests. It’s reasonable to project Williams being active now.
Rookie Colbie Young and preseason standout Dohnte Meyers are next up to fill Iosivas’ role in the slot. Both will be counted on to play more.
“Andrei did a lot for us in the run game. He was a dependable, really good third receiver. So you can’t just replace him with one guy,” quarterback Joe Burrow told reporters Wednesday. “You put plays in the game plan that you have certain guys in mind for, and that’s for them to do upstairs, and we’ll have our opinions here and there, but they all have to know everything for the most part because you never know who’s going to get thrown in there.”
Joe Giles-Harris to continue special teams role
Cincinnati signing Giles-Harris to the roster makes perfect sense. The third-year LB was elevated from the practice squad for the first two games of this season. NFL rules allow a standard elevation to occur just once more this year.
Giles-Harris has been elevated for his value on special teams. He has the seventh-most ST snaps on the team, and the highest grade (91.6) from Pro Football Focus. He also gives the defense a fifth backer to fill out the depth chart behind backups Oren Burks and Swayze Bozeman.
