The Bengals signed wide receiver Jheranie Boyd on Thursday, a move needed to shore up their receiving corps in the face of injuries.
A.J. Green bruised his knee in practice last week and has not returned to the field, an injury that both the Bengals website and Joe Reedy of the Cincinnati Enquirer both report is likely to keep him out of the team’s pair of joint practices with the Falcons in Atlanta next week before the two teams make their preseason debuts next Thursday.
The Bengals are also likely to be without Andrew Hawkins, who injured his ankle during Thursday’s practice when he dove to catch a pass from Andy Dalton. Coach Marvin Lewis said he wasn’t sure how long Hawkins would be out, but that he knows receivers “shouldn’t dive for the ball” during practice for just that reason. Geoff Hobson of the Bengals website reports Hawkins is expected to be off the field for no more than two weeks.
Marvin Jones also has an undisclosed injury that’s kept him out of practice this week, leaving the Bengals thinner than they might like heading into the preseason opener. There’s no fear at this point that the injuries will impact the team come the start of the regular season and the Boyd signing is a signal that the Bengals won’t be risking otherwise by pushing any receivers back into action before they’re sure all is well.