While it won’t quite be official until Cincinnati releases its final injury report later on Friday, the Bengals will once again be without three of their top offensive linemen this weekend.
Head coach Zac Taylor said in his Friday press conference that he doesn’t see right guard Alex Cappa (ankle) or left tackle Jonah Williams (knee) playing in the AFC Championship game. The two players missed all three days of practice this week.
Right tackle La'el Collins is already out and on injured reserve with a torn ACL suffered in December.
That means Max Scharping and Jackson Carman are likely to start at right guard and left tackle, respectively.
Taylor also wouldn’t go into whether or not Cappa and/or Williams might be available for Super Bowl LVII — if the Bengals get that far.
“Really, I just focus on this week,” Taylor said. “And then we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”
Taylor added he’s sure it’s been tough for Cappa and Williams to be sidelined at this point in the season.
“They work hard, they work as hard as anybody we’ve got on the team to put themselves in great position,” Taylor said. “It’s a part of football and they understand that and they’re doing everything they can to get back on the field.”
Tight end Hayden Hurst also popped up on Thursday’s injury report, listed as limited with a calf injury. Taylor said that was a precautionary move, adding, “I thought he had a great practice today.”
Defensive back Tre Fowers was also on the injury report with a hamstring issue this week, but it looks like he should be OK entering this weekend’s game.
Cincinnati’s full injury report will be released later on Friday.