Latest On Bengals’ A.J. Green
It could be a while before the Bengals get A.J. Green back on the field. The star wide receiver says he still has “a ways to go” before making his return, as Laurel Pfahler of the Dayton Daily News writes. 
[RELATED: Bengals Won’t Trade Green]
“If I can go, I can go,” Green said. “If I can’t, I can’t. It’s no big thing. Like I said from Day 1, if I’m healthy enough to play then I’m going to play. Right now, I still have a ways to go…There’s no need to rush this thing. Like I said from Day 1, I’m gonna have to feel good to get back out there to where I can play at a high level to where I know I can. Just don’t want to rush it back like I did with my toe (last year).”
Green has yet to play this year and the Bengals have yet to win a game. They’re 0-7 after Sunday’s 27-17 loss to the Jaguars and one can’t help but wonder if they’d at least be in the win column by now if Green was on the field – especially with an opportunity to exploit the Jaguars’ Jalen Ramsey-less defense.
There has been progress for Green, but also new setbacks. Green participated in individual drills ahead of the team’s Week 6 game, but was unable to practice before the Jags’ game. Between this ankle issue and last year’s toe injury, Green has missed eleven straight games.
Green is in his contract year, but the Bengals say he won’t be moved before Tuesday’s NFL trade deadline. Even if the Bengals did want to trade him for draft capital, it’s not clear what they could get for him, given his current condition.
Injury Updates: Green, Mahomes, Newton
It doesn’t look like A.J. Green is going anywhere. Despite Bengals head coach Zac Taylor insisting that the team would not trade its injured star prior to the October 29 deadline, there was still plenty of speculation that Cincinnati would make a deal if it got the right offer. But Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports that Green, who returned to practice on a limited basis earlier this month, will not be ready to play until after the deadline.
Green is progressing nicely in his return, per Schefter, but the Bengals want to ensure a complete recovery before bringing him back, which makes it sound as though they have every intention of re-signing him this offseason (and, as Ben Baby of ESPN.com tweets, it’s an interesting contrast to the dispute between Cincinnati and Cordy Glenn). So if your team is looking for a WR upgrade, you can probably go ahead and scratch Green off your wish list.
Now for two more high-profile injury updates:
- Ian Rapoport of NFLcom (video link) has positive news on Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes. Per RapSheet, surgery (even in the offseason) has not been discussed, which contradicts a report from several days ago. Rapoport says Mahomes will miss at least the next three games, which means he will be sidelined for matchups against the Packers, Vikings, and Titans. Then, Kansas City travels to Mexico City for a game against the Chargers, and as Matt Miller of Bleacher Report observes, the field surface at Estadio Azteca could be questionable (Twitter link). The Chiefs have a bye after their sojourn across the border, so, in keeping with the earlier reports, it seems like a Week 13 return against the Raiders is the safest bet. Schefter says Mahomes could be back even sooner than the three-week minimum that Rapoport detailed, though that would seem like a very risk move on the Chiefs’ part. Luckily, Herbie Teope of the Kansas City Star tweets that Mahomes’ visit for a second opinion went well, though Teope does not offer a timeline for the star QB’s return.
- The Panthers are perfectly content for Cam Newton to take as much time as necessary to recover from his foot injury given that the club is 4-0 under backup Kyle Allen. Carolina is on a bye this week, and Newton is expected to return to the practice field in the coming days, but Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports says the team has not yet begun to discuss the QB situation, even privately. That means that, as long as Allen keeps performing, he may keep playing, which is consistent with reports from last week. In any event, the Panthers will not address the issue until Newton is back to 100%.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/19/19
A couple of practice squad moves to report as we await kickoffs tomorrow:
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: RB Samaje Perine
- Released: OT Dino Boyd
Detroit Lions
- Signed: RB Paul Perkins
- Waived: RB Wes Hills
A couple of somewhat notable running backs latched back on today in Perine and Perkins. They’d been waived by the Bengals and Lions respectively in the past couple of days. Perkins was a fifth-round pick of the Giants back in 2016, while Perine was taken in the fourth-round by the Redskins in 2017. Both players received plenty of buzz in their rookie years, but fizzled out quickly. Perkins went to UCLA, while Perine is an Oklahoma product.
Bengals Activate CB Darqueze Dennard
After a long hiatus, Darqueze Dennard is ready to return for the Bengals. The team, which re-signed the former first-round cornerback in March, activated him on Friday, Ben Baby of ESPN.com tweets.
Dennard will take Cordy Glenn‘s roster spot, with the Bengals having suspended their left tackle. This will provide a key cornerback reinforcement for the 0-6 team, especially with both Dre Kirkpatrick and William Jackson III out against the Jaguars.
Prior to re-upping with the Bengals, Dennard underwent a left knee surgery that was believed to be minor at the time. But he ended up missing the first six games of the season, due to the stay on Cincinnati’s PUP list.
The Bengals re-signed Dennard, their 2014 first-round pick, to a one-year deal worth $4.5MM. He will now have a chance to make an impression in another contract year.
Bengals Suspend Cordy Glenn
The Bengals have suspended Cordy Glenn for one game, per a club announcement. This follows Glenn’s blowup with a Bengals coach on Wednesday. 
In the press release, the Bengals said that Glenn was suspended for “internal disciplinary reasons.” The team also says it will have “no further comment regarding the suspension.”
Glenn has been sidelined with a concussion and was cleared to practice this week. The veteran tackle feels the club has been trying to rush him back prematurely, which likely fueled Wednesday’s tiff.
After that argument, Glenn’s return will not happen on Sunday against the Jaguars. It’s anyone’s guess as to whether he’ll face the Rams on Oct. 27, or if he’ll even be a member of the team after the trade deadline.
Bengals Sign DE Anthony Zettel
The Bengals have signed free agent defensive end Anthony Zettel, the club announced today. He’ll take the roster spot of recently-released Samaje Perine.
Cincinnati is extremely banged up at the defensive end position, so the club can use plenty of help. Carlos Dunlap didn’t play in Week 6 and hasn’t practiced this week while battling a knee injury, while Carl Lawson — who did play against the Ravens on Sunday — has been held out of practice with a hamstring issue. Veteran Kerry Wynn, meanwhile, was recently placed on injured reserve after suffering a concussion in Week 2.
Zettel, 27, was a 2016 sixth-round pick of the Lions. He started all 16 games and posted 6.5 sacks in 2017, but was waived after the season despite that performance. Zettel spent the 2018 campaign with the Browns, playing on roughly 15% of Cleveland’s defensive snaps.
Cordy Glenn, Bengals At Odds?
Cordy Glenn‘s second season as a Bengal has yet to begin, due to his weeks-long battle with a concussion. But the veteran left tackle has been cleared to return to practice, per Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic (on Twitter). However, matters do not appear to be going smoothly here.
Glenn and the Bengals are not in lock step on the team’s handling of his concussion, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports. The need for additional medical opinions and whether or not Glenn can return to game action have been points of contention for the team and the 30-year-old blocker. Ultimately, Glenn believes the Bengals are rushing him back from this concussion, Florio notes. This situation escalated midweek.
An altercation spawned between Glenn and a member of the Bengals’ coaching staff, according to Florio, who adds the eighth-year veteran told first-year HC Zac Taylor to cut him. The Bengals have fined Glenn $200K for conduct detrimental to the team.
Taylor said earlier this month he expected Glenn to play this season. Cincinnati’s 2018 trade acquisition has been sidelined since late August with a head injury. Still on the contract he and the Bills agreed to in 2016, Glenn is signed through the 2021 season.
Glenn started 13 games for the Bengals last season. They moved him to guard briefly, to accommodate first-round pick Jonah Williams, but quickly backtracked on that after Williams’ offseason injury. The Bengals have experienced rampant trouble on their offensive line this season. They have operated at nowhere close to full strength and stand to continue to do so.
Bengals To Release RB Samaje Perine
The Bengals are releasing running back Samaje Perine, according to a source who spoke with PFT’s Mike Florio (on Twitter). 
Perine had some buzz as a fourth-round pick in Washington a couple of years back, but has yet to break out as a pro. The Oklahoma product was a key special teams player in Cincinnati, but they’ve decided to move on from him.
Perine managed 603 yards in his rookie season, but averaged just 3.4 yards on his 175 attempts. Then, in 2018, he carried the rock just eight times. With the Bengals, he saw a grand total of five snaps.
The Bengals are 0-6 as they head into this week’s matchup against the Jaguars.
Bengals’ Darqueze Dennard Returns To Practice
Darqueze Dennard took a step towards stepping back on the field. On Wednesday, the cornerback was cleared to resume practicing with the Bengals.
Dennard hopes to return from the left knee injury that landed him on the PUP list. From here, the Bengals have 21 days to use him in practice, without having him count against the 53-man roster limit.
Dennard, a sixth-year pro, has played in 68 games for the Bengals since being selected in the first round of the 2014 draft. In that span, he has 214 tackles, three interceptions, three sacks, 17 passes defenses, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery to his credit.
The Bengals are 0-6 heading into this week’s game against the Jalen Ramsey-less Jaguars.
NFL Workout Updates: 10/16/19
Here is the latest from the workout circuit:
Chicago Bears
- DL Daryle Banfield, DL Fadol Brown, C Anthony Fabiano, DL P.J. Johnson, T Kyle Murphy, C Keegan Render, DL Jay-Tee Tiuli (per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune, on Twitter)
Cincinnati Bengals
- DE Nate Orchard, DT Anthony Zettel (via the Houston Chronicle’s Aaron Wilson, on Twitter)
Cleveland Browns
- LB Marquis Flowers (per Wilson, on Twitter)
Green Bay Packers
- S Chris Johnson, RB David Williams (per Wilson, on Twitter)
Houston Texans
- T Chris Clark, T Kyle Murphy (per Howard Balzer of BalzerFootball.com, on Twitter)
Indianapolis Colts
- DB Trae Elston, S Mike Tyson, DB Isaiah Wharton (via Wilson, on Twitter)
Kansas City Chiefs
- DT Justin Ellis, DL Mike Pennel (per Wilson, on Twitter)
New England Patriots
- K Nick Folk, K Greg Joseph, K Austin MacGinnis, K/P Austin Rehkow, K Giorgio Tavecchio (per Mike Reiss of ESPN.com, on Twitter)
New Orleans Saints
- RB Travaris Cadet (via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, on Twitter)
New York Jets
- C Ryan Crozier, DL Corbin Kaufusi, C James Murray (per Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News and Wilson, Twitter links)
Pittsburgh Steelers
- RB Tony Brooks-James, RB Darrin Hall (via Wilson, on Twitter)
Seattle Seahawks
- LB Andrew Dowell (visit), LB Brady Sheldon, LB Sutton Smith, LB Pita Taumoepenu (via Balzer, Twitter links)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- LB Keishawn Bierria, DB Jordan Brown, C Anthony Fabiano, LB Robert McCray, WR Eli Rogers, RB Aca’Cedric Ware, LB Kyle Wilson (per Jenna Laine and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com, on Twitter)
Tennessee Titans
- LB Nigel Harris (per Wilson, on Twitter)
Washington Redskins
- FB Tommy Bohanon, FB Michael Burton, FB Derrick Coleman, RB Josh Ferguson, FB Tre Madden, FB Elijah Wellman (according to Wilson and NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, Twitter links)