Bengals Injury Updates: Reader, Hopkins Get Good News, Hubert Out for Season

The Bengals got good news about multiple key players that are working their way back from serious injuries. 

Center Trey Hopkins and defensive tackle DJ Reader are both fully cleared for training camp. 

Hopkins suffered a torn ACL in Week 17 against Baltimore. Reader only appeared in five games after injuring his quad in Week 5 last season. 

Both players will be on the field when the Bengals begin training camp practice on Wednesday. 

^{"Hopkins just tore the ACL in January so we have to be really careful of him in camp," Bengals head coach Zac Taylor said. "He’s a guy we will manage early on and take it week to week like we talked about with Joe (Burrow). Probably hold him a little bit more early on. DJ is good to go. He is fully cleared, ready to roll."}

If Hopkins can get back to full strength before the season opener, then that's one big question mark answered for an offensive line hoping to be much improved this season. 

The Bengals need Reader to set a tone on the interior of their defensive line. They struggled for most of last season and need a big, athletic player like him in the middle of their defense.

Other Updates

Unfortunately, it wasn't all sunshine on the injury front. Rookie defensive end Wyatt Hubert suffered a torn pectoral muscle while he was training and will miss the entire season. 

The Bengals selected Hubert in the seventh-round (235th overall) in April's NFL Draft. He was one of the many young players hoping to earn a spot on the 53-man roster. 

Rookie punter Drue Chrisman's chances of making the team took a big hit after he suffered a hand injury. He's expected to miss a few weeks, which clears the way for Kevin Huber to be the Bengals' punter for a 13th consecutive season.

Renell Wren was placed on the PUP list on Sunday. He's expected to ready to practice in the near future. He's also recovering from torn quad.