Brown was ready for a more significant role because he had been practising hard.
So much for that, then.
The rookie quarterback suffered a hamstring injury during practise on Thursday, the same day that the Cincinnati Bengals made hints about giving Chase Brown more playing time.
Then, on Friday, head coach Zac Taylor announced that Brown would miss this week’s game against the San Francisco 49ers due to a hamstring pull. After this week, the Illinois player selected in the fifth round may also miss additional time.
This season, the Bengals’ ground game has not taken off. Joe Burrow’s injury made it easier for defences to load the box, which contributed to some of that, but the Bengals haven’t been able to run the ball efficiently even after the injury appeared to heal.
This increases the pressure on the Bengals to sign a new running back or make a trade before Tuesday, the NFL Trade Deadline. After all, it looks like Brown may miss a few weeks, Trayveon Williams, another backup, has a history of injuries, and the coaching staff doesn’t seem to be very confident in Chris Evans.
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Bengals place rookie RB Chase Brown (hamstring) on IR
Cincinnati Bengals rookie running back Chase Brown was placed on injured reserve Saturday. Brown, who is nursing a hamstring injury, already had been ruled out for Sunday’s game against the host San Francisco 49ers. He will miss at least four games as a result of Saturday’s move.
Brown, 23, has three catches for seven yards and two carries for six yards while appearing in five games this season. He also has appeared on special teams with the Bengals, who selected him in the fifth round of the this year’s NFL Draft. Joe Mixon remains the starting running back in Cincinnati, with Trayveon Williams and Chris Evans expected to serve as backups.
