Bengals lose more than just a game to the Chiefs as they drop to 0-2 on the season
A major weakness for the Cincinnati Bengals just became weaker following a heartbreaking 26-25 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. And it has major ramifications for the weeks to come. Both starting defensive tackles, B.J. Hill and Sheldon Rankins, left Sunday's game with hamstring injuries. Hill left immediately while Rankins tried to tough it out […]
A major weakness for the Cincinnati Bengals just became weaker following a heartbreaking 26-25 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. And it has major ramifications for the weeks to come.
Both starting defensive tackles, B.J. Hill and Sheldon Rankins, left Sunday's game with hamstring injuries. Hill left immediately while Rankins tried to tough it out and come back in the game.
Hill and Rankins are not only the starting defensive tackle pairing for Cincinnati's defense, they were two of just four remaining healthy players at the position.
Rookies Kris Jenkins Jr. and McKinnley Jackson are currently sidelined with a thumb and knee injury, respectively. Jenkins was inactive Sunday, and Jackson has to miss at least two more games on the Reserve/Injured list.
Now that Hill and Rankins share an injury that had them leaving the game early, the outlook for next week is very bleak for the defensive line. Head coach Zac Taylor didn't have an update on either injury after the game.
"We'll find out more tomorrow," Taylor said.
Reserves Zach Carter and Jay Tufele finished the game at defensive tackle, but the Chiefs already did plenty of damage on the ground. Running back Isaih Pacheco rushed for 90 yards on 19 carries and was complemented by 24 additional yards by rookie Carson Steele.
Kansas City is built to pound the ball up the gut with an elite interior offensive line trio of Joe Thuney-Creed Humphrey-Trey Smith going from left guard to center to right guard. Considering the circumstances, Cincinnati can feel relatively good about how the defense played.
But injuries aren't piling up, the pile is just getting taller.
Jackson went down early in August. Jenkins got hurt in practice prior to Week 1. Their injuries forced Carter and Tufele in to larger roles. Those roles aren't going to get any smaller with Hill and Rankins' statuses up in the air for next week.
It's probably time for the Bengals to make a move. There are two defensive tackles they can call up from the practice squad in Domenique Davis and Justin Rogers. Both might have to be elevated next week if one of Rankins or Hill is out or limited.
There's also the possibility for a trade, but midseason deals are usually saved for right before the midseason deadline, and the Bengals rarely ever take that route.
The Bengals can be proud of the strides they made from last week, but 0-2 is still 0-2, and depth no longer exists at the defensive tackle spot.
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