Cincinnati Bengals right tackle La’el Collins will miss the remainder of the season after suffering a torn ACL and MCL during the team’s win over the New England Patriots.
According to Kelsey Conway of the Cincinnati Enquirer, an MRI on Sunday revealed the extent of the damage and the recovery timetable is seven months.
It’s a stunning, unexpected turnaround on the Collins injury news. He passed the on-field ACL test during the game and it sounded like only his kneecap shifted, suggesting he wouldn’t miss extensive time.
Instead, the veteran who has battled back issues since the summer will now have to rehab well into the offseason in an effort to make it back for next year. He’s under contract through 2024, but there is an out built into it for this offseason.
With Collins out, the Bengals will keep leaning on Hakeem Adeniji to fill the void. This ends the streak of the Cincinnati starting five leading all offensive lines in snaps played together.
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