Bengals head coach Zac Taylor doesn’t have a timeline for the return of No. 1 cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt with a sprained ankle that has knocked him out of his second straight game.
Which means cornerback Chidobe Awuzie is going to be needed to take the bulk of the snaps like he was last week when the Bengals face the Jaguars’ high-flying offense Monday night (8:15-Cincinnati’s Channel 9, ESPN).
Taylor-Britt suffered the injury during Friday’s practice at the IEL Indoor Facility when they were trying to figure out if he could come back from the quad injury he absorbed Nov. 16 in Baltimore.
Awuzie is trying to work his game back to when he had the title of No. 1 corner before he tore his ACL 13 months ago. He also has been dealing with a back issue this season, but last week his 69 snaps were the most he’s played since he took all 72 in the Oct. 16, 2022 win in New Orleans last year.
“Chido finished the game, which is great,” said defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo this week. “It’s a great sign for his knee, for him. Great sign for him just mentally to say, hey, ‘I got to finish the game. I did well.’ It’s just another step to him getting back to 100%.”
There could be a practice squad elevation (Allan George? Sidney Jones IV?) with rookie DJ Ivey also a backup as all hands are on deck on the corner to stop one of the NFL’s hottest down-field offenses. Anarumo is looking to settle down a defense that has allowed 17 passes of at least 20 yards in the last three weeks.
According to Next Gen Stats, Jags quarterback Trevor Lawrence has a career-high passer rating of 98.6 on throws of 10-plus air yards and more career-highs with 19 completions for 583 yards and a 123.7 rating on throws of 20-plus air yards. Plus, the Jags have different receiving leaders in receptions (tight end Evan Engram), receiving yards (wide receiver Christian Kirk), and receiving touchdowns (wide receiver Calvin Ridley). The Jaguars and Vikings are the only teams with three players with at least 500 yards.
“Let’s start with the speed factor of it. All of their receivers can really go. Those guys can really fly,” Anarumo said of Ridley, Kirk, and Zay Jones. “And then, oh, by the way, Evan Engram can really roll. And the back (Travis Etienne) is fast and tough. The quarterback is a really, really good athlete that can hurt you with his arm and his legs.
“There’s a reason why they’ve won all these (eight) games. A big part of it is what they can do on offense … (Lawrence) can make some really strong arm throws. He just threw a darn 22-yard comeback. Not a lot of guys who can do that. And he was on the move to do it against Indianapolis and he can get himself out of trouble with his legs. He’s really superior athlete. I think he’s a big, big guy. We had him here a couple of years ago. You saw that on display. His athleticism where he can get out of the pocket and scramble.”
The Bengals won that one at Paycor Stadium, 24-21, on Sept. 30, 2021 on a Thursday night quarterback Joe Burrow racked up his first career fourth-quarter comeback victory complete with a game-winning drive.