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The Cincinnati Bengals' 27-12 victory over the New York Jets last week came at a significant cost as they lost DJ Reader to injury. He is now expected to spend extended time on the sidelines due to his injured knee.
He is expected back before the end of the season, but is still going to be out for a significant amount of time.
What does it mean for the wider Bengals defense? Based on PFF rating, he was the highest rated interior defensive lineman over the first three weeks of the NFL season. Losing him means that fantasy managers are recommended to downgrade the Bengals defense for the foreseeable future.
DJ Reader's injury and its effects on Bengals
DJ Reader is expected to be out until, at least, Week 9 for the Cincinnati Bengals. There is no direct replacement for the Bengals in that position right now and that can contribute to extra pressure on the edges and for linebackers. That is one of the reasons for the recommended downgrade of the Bengals' defensive unit.
It is a devastating blow for the Bengals as he has been their best player on defense for the past couple of seasons. Reader went down in the second quarter of the game against the New York Jets and did not return. He is expected to be placed on injured reserve.
DJ Reader had 15 starts last season and amassed 43 tackles and two sacks in those games. He added another 12 tackles and one more sack in the postseason. He has been performing strongly this season as well, recording 10 tackles, three quarterback hits, one tackle for a loss and a fumble recovery.
Reader is likely to be replaced by Josh Tupou alongside BJ Hill until the time he is on the sidelines. Josh Tupou has been a regular for the Cincinnati Bengals as well but not as a starter. He has four tackles thus far this season and is expected to become a vital part of the team.
The aim for the Cincinnati Bengals now will be to manage DJ Reader's recovery in a way that he is back towards the end of the season when they are still pushing for a playoff spot.
For any of his relievers, the primary instruction from their coaches will be to do their jobs in a way that when DJ Reader returns, the Bengals are still in playoffs contention.
