Bengals cornerback Chidobe Awuzie on track to quickly come off PUP list

Four players for the Cincinnati Bengals are beginning training camp on the Active/Physically Unable to Perform list this week, headlined by starting cornerback Chidobe Awuzie and right tackle La'el Collins. Not only are they both starters from the 2022 team, they each suffered torn ACLs at the minimum during the season. This alone made it […]

John Sheeran — Cincinnati Bengals News Writer

Jul 24, 2023 7:22 PM EDT

Not only are they both starters from the 2022 team, they each suffered torn ACLs at the minimum during the season. This alone made it surprising to see them showcase notable progress in their respective recoveries throughout OTAs and minicamp, but there's still more work to be done before they practice with the team.

Luckily for Awuzie, his path to a full recovery seems a bit shorter in comparison.

Awuzie and Collins are joined by second-string tight end Mitchell Wilcox and reserve tackle Devin Cochran on the injury list. Director of player personnel Duke Tobin gave a rather telling update on the PUP-listed players and mentioned that Awuzie and Wilcox are on track to return quicker.

"I think two of them will probably be a little shorter term than the other two," Tobin said. "I think we feel like Cochran has a little bit longer term injury and we’re not sure when La’el will be cleared and ready to go. We think the other two will be up and going hopefully."

Tobin was not alone in his assesment of Awuzie's current status. Defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo said he has "full confidence in Chido" as camp draws near. Anarumo had to scheme around his No. 1 cornerback's absence for the back-half of last season. To get him back for Week 1 would be a huge advantage.

Collins' case is not as optimistic, but you wouldn't know that from him. The six-year starter for the Dallas Cowboys and now Cincinnati is ready to compete for his job at right tackle once he gets the all clear, and he was moving splendidly during offseason workouts. The sooner he's activated, the better chance he has at fending off Jonah Williams and Jackson Carman to bookend Orlando Brown Jr.