Bengals offensive line still dealing with notable injuries ahead of game vs. Chargers

Will the Bengals have the normal starting five for the critical AFC showdown?

[mm-video type=video id=01fnpb07em577gg9m6jv playlist_id=01eqbw0bft20de1r4d player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fnpb07em577gg9m6jv/01fnpb07em577gg9m6jv-1f90c8e0eada3c27072b35b8169a9fde.jpg]

The Cincinnati Bengals would love to roll out the same starting five along the offensive line for the fourth consecutive time with the Los Angeles Chargers in town over the weekend.

But with two of the three injury reports for the week on the books now, that’s beginning to look unlikely.

Both center Trey Hopkins and right tackle Riley Reiff suffered ankle injuries during last week’s win over Pittsburgh. Those issues kept both guys out of practice on Wednesday and Thursday.

Friday’s practice and final injury report will say it all — if both guys can go even limited, they have a shot at suiting up.

Initially, after the win over Pittsburgh, Zac Taylor said Hopkins’ injury wasn’t serious and Reiff could’ve returned if they really needed him.

Given the importance of consistency together for a starting five, Friday is a critical moment for the Bengals, especially now that right guard has finally been upgraded thanks to strong play from Hakeem Adeniji.

[listicle id=49320]