This offseason, the Bengals’ offense has suffered from bad news after bad news. After losing running back Chris Evans for the season to a torn patellar tendon, they now lose a key piece to the offensive line in third-year offensive tackle D’Ante Smith.
He injured his patellar tendon during Thursday’s practice, and more tests will reveal the true severity of the injury.
Initial belief is #Bengals OT D’Ante Smith will miss the 2024 season with a patellar tendon injury, per source. MRI results to confirm the exact nature of injury. Smith went down in Thursday’s joint practice with the #Bears on Thursday.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) August 16, 2024
Smith is just the latest addition the Bengals will have to make to be hurt. As of now, the Bengals have 11 players on their injury report. The most notable players are Ja’Marr Chase, who missed practice on Tuesday with an undisclosed injury, and defensive end Sam Hubbard, who’s considered week-to-week with a knee injury.
Besides the San Francisco 49ers, who currently have 16 players on the injury report, Cincinnati is one of the least unlucky teams regarding staying healthy this offseason and training camp, with D’Ante Smith being the latest.
D’Ante Smith Was Set to Have Biggest Impact This Year
This is not only a huge blow for the Bengals’ offense but also horrible and possibly career-altering news for Smith.
Between 2021 and 2022, Smith registered 61 total snaps between offense and special teams.
He had been buried to third-string right tackle by the start of training camp, but with second-stringer Amarius Mims sustaining a strained pectoral muscle, there was a chance Smith would get serious playing time in the first few weeks of the regular season.
Now, Smith won’t get the opportunity to see the field again until next season. By then, he will be entering the last year of his rookie contract, and the Bengals could opt not to bring him back.
