The Cincinnati Bengals got an unwelcome addition to their injury report before Week 2's road opener against the Houston Texans. Quarterback Joe Burrow is questionable but will play through back tightness, so thank goodness he won't be among the Bengals' inactives.
At least there's not much else to be concerned about on that front for Cincinnati. Defensive tackle B.J. Hill was the only other player to pop up this week with an Achilles issue, and you'd imagine the Bengals will play it safe with him.
But the lack of injury designation for 2025 first-round pick Shemar Stewart means he should make his season debut. It'll be fascinating to see what he brings to the stacked defensive line rotation.
Stewart does create some congestion in the trenches and the inactives sheet despite Hill's expected absence, though, so let's dive into who will likely be held out for Cincy on Sunday. Worry not, the official inactives list will populate below as soon as it's ready to roll.
Bengals predicted Week 1 inactives list
- LB Swayze Bozeman
- TE Jack Endries
- DT B.J. Hill
- OT Myles Hinton
- C Connor Lew
- CB Josh Newton
- WR Colbie Young
It's looking pretty similar to last week really, with the grand exception of Shemar Stewart jumping in and B.J. Hill getting sidelined. You know what this means for the defensive line!? LANDON ROBINSON is making his debut, baby! Rock that military uniform and ball out, good sir!
The only new additions to my Week 2 Bengals inactives projections are Hill and linebacker Swayze Bozeman.
Why do I say Swayze? Well, despite the fact that he's the best athlete in Cincinnati's linebacker corps, Oren Burks has years of pelts on the wall as an elite special teams guy. Plus, the Bengals promoted linebacker Joe Giles-Harris to the active roster, presumably for further kick coverage reinforcements in Houston.
I was a bit surprised to see Jacob Bayer get the nod over rookie Connor Lew as the last interior offensive lineman active in Week 1. Bayer is pretty lights out whether he lines up at guard or center, though, so that versatility will probably allow him to keep being up over Lew for game days.
Josh Newton is easy to sit down again. I love me some Fig, but this is less about his ability and more about how strong that Cincinnati cornerback group is thanks to rookie third-rounder Tacario Davis' quick adjustment to the NFL level.
Last real point to make here of any consequence: I'd love to see the 6'5" Colbie Young get a crack at his NFL debut. He was inactive for Week 1, but he's such a weapon to deploy against that stout Texans secondary with his massive catch radius. Alas, I believe Ke'Shawn Williams' ability to help on special teams will grant him active status.
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