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Ben Baby, ESPN writer
CINCINNATI — The Bengals will be without another starting cornerback for the foreseeable future.
Second-year player DJ Turner II was placed on injured reserve Tuesday after suffering a broken collarbone in Sunday’s loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
Turner will miss at least the next four games as he goes on IR, but it’s too early to say if the injury will be season-ending.
“I wouldn’t say he’s 100 percent done for the year,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said. “But it’s something you have to let sit and heal.”
That means the Bengals (4-7) are missing two potential starting outside cornerbacks. Dax Hill, who beat out Turner for a starting job in training camp, has been sidelined since suffering a torn ACL in the team’s Week 5 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
The latest setback makes Cincinnati’s cornerback situation a little less complicated than it was about to be. Cam Taylor-Britt, who entered the year as the roster’s undisputed best cornerback, was benched in Sunday’s loss after allowing a touchdown. When Turner was injured in the third quarter, Taylor-Britt was reinserted in front of rookie Josh Newton.
Turner, a 2023 second-round pick out of Michigan, was in the midst of perhaps his best game with the Bengals until the injury, according to defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo. Newton and Turner could have been the starting options alongside cornerback Mike Hilton for the team’s next game, Anarumo added.
“Who knows?” Anarumo said when presented with that scenario. “But DJ is hurt now, so that’s where we are.”
Taylor and Anarumo remained optimistic about Taylor-Britt’s recovery despite a season marked by inconsistent play, not just from him but from the entire defense.
“I never throw in the towel, especially with a guy like that. [who] “It’s been successful,” Anarumo said. “Sometimes you don’t know what’s going on inside a man’s head. But Cam is right.”
The Bengals filled their vacant roster spot by claiming cornerback Marco Wilson off waivers from the New England Patriots on Tuesday.
