Tag: C.J. Uzomah

C.J. Uzomah updates rehab and training with Joe Burrow, Trey Hopkins

Cincinnati Bengals TE C.J. Uzomah provided some behind-the-scenes info on the rehab room at PBS.

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Cincinnati Bengals tight end C.J. Uzomah certainly isn’t alone in his rehab process at Paul Brown Stadium.

He’s got star quarterback Joe Burrow and star center Trey Hopkins right there with him.

Uzomah caught up with Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com to reveal how he’s doing on the comeback trail from his torn Achilles:

“When I’m cutting, it feels like I’m getting back to not thinking as much about pushing off and doing certain things. The main thing is the mental aspect. Am I going to think about this while I’m making this cut? I’m not really thinking about it as much as I was in the past.”

The veteran tight end revealed the training staff that helped Leon Hall recover multiple times from the same injury is a big reason he’s sticking at PBS for his rehab this offseason.

But Hopkins and Burrow sure aren’t bad selling points either.

Uzomah describes both as upbeat and fun given the circumstances and they’re even trading verbal jabs here and there in true locker room fashion.

With Burrow already on track for Week 1 and Uzomah feeling like he’s going to make it there too, two small pieces of the Bengals attack seem on track — and they’re having fun tackling it together.

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C.J. Uzomah provides early rave review of Joe Burrow’s rehab, comeback efforts

Cincinnati Bengals tight end C.J. Uzomah gave a behind-the-scenes look at rehab with Joe Burrow.

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Cincinnati Bengals tight end C.J. Uzomah has a new partner in the rehab facilities at Paul Brown Stadium: Joe Burrow.

Burrow was at PBS this week working with trainers as everyone awaits official word on when he’ll have surgery to repair his left knee. That means Uzomah — who suffered a torn Achilles in mid-September — got a first-hand look at Burrow’s rehab process.

Here’s what Uzomah told Dan Hoard on the Bengals Booth Podcast about Burrow’s early comeback efforts:

“Today I saw him in there and he seems high-spirited. He was asking a bunch of questions about ‘Hey can I do this? If I try to flex this right now is that ok?’…

…And the trainer Nick was like…’yes? Does that not hurt?’ And he (Burrow) was like ‘No, it feels a lot better already today.’ …Nick came to help me out and he was like ‘That guy’s a beast. That’s insane that he’s…his pain tolerance has to be ridiculous for that.'”

There’s a long, long road ahead of Burrow given the severity of the injury, even if the team expects him to make a 100 percent recovery and play next season.

If there’s a silver lining, Burrow will be in there all offseason with a veteran leader like Uzomah and the two can push each other.

That other players have already offered encouraging stories like this about Burrow’s rehab is nothing but a good sign, though. Based on his personality and the message he posted to fans after the injury, Burrow will attack every day like what Uzomah described above.

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Pressure is on Drew Sample to step up for Bengals with C.J. Uzomah reportedly lost for season

Drew Sample will have to step up for the Cincinnati Bengals with C.J. Uzomah out.

The Cincinnati Bengals are about to find out if the investment in Drew Sample was a wise one.

During Thursday night’s loss to the Cleveland Browns, starting tight end C.J. Uzomah went down with an injury. One could tell by his reaction and how quickly team ruled it out that he’d miss some extended time.

Not long after, reports confirmed Uzomah will miss the rest of the season with a torn Achilles, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

The pressure on Sample, a surprise second-round pick in 2019 during Zac Taylor’s first draft, is officially on.

Sample got in nine games as a rookie and caught just five passes. The narrative about his blocking-only status started to change Thursday night though when he showed up second on the receiving chart by catching seven of his nine targets for 45 yards.

Given Joe Burrow’s shaky rapport with non-Tyler Boyd wideouts right now, Sample could quickly become a main fixture of the offense. It’s a chance for both he and Taylor to prove doubters wrong, to say the least.

Sample probably won’t be able to fill the incredible leadership gap Uzomah has commanded as of late. Few could. But if he can be a consistent target for a rookie passer, he can fil the role of safety net and help Burrow develop at a steady clip.

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WATCH: C.J. Uzomah catches Joe Burrow’s first NFL touchdown pass

The former Auburn tight end got open and Joe Burrow did not miss.

Who had C.J. Uzomah as the recipient of Joe Burrow’s first touchdown pass?

The former Auburn tight end ran an excellent route and Burrow, the 2019 Heisman Trophy winner, hit him right in the numbers for the 23-yard connection.

Bengals’ C.J. Uzomah stunned at Joe Burrow’s command at line of scrimmage

Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow has impressed C.J. Uzomah.

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Another day, more proof Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow has notably won over his teammates.

That includes veteran tight end C.J. Uzomah, who notes Burrow’s leadership is infectious.

This was perhaps no more apparent to Uzomah than Monday when Burrow almost casually marched the offense down the field, making important checks at the line of scrimmage in the process.

From Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com:

“He said a few things just to get us motivated. He said we’re going to do this real quick and see what happens and then I will check us in and out of this play if we need to and I think we executed pretty flawlessly going down the stretch and knowing we needed a touchdown.

“He’s making all the right reads. He’s getting us in and out of all the right protections and making all the right checks and certain checks I didn’t even know we were allowed to check into.”

Uzomah capped it off with something fans will like to see: “He’s like, ‘Why not? Go out there and do this. Come in here and do this.’ It’s been a lot of fun, honestly…He’s the real deal, I will say that.”

Burrow ripped through the first-team defense Monday, a big bounceback performance for the rookie after running into some struggles against the pass-rush on Sunday.

His command at the line of scrimmage isn’t shocking considering how open coaches have been about giving him “full authority” there. It’s also one of many recent times Burrow has impressed a teammate, including Tee Higgins being shocked by the power behind his throws.

Since there isn’t a preseason this year, these continual notes on Burrow are about as good as it gets and great news out of training camp.

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