Despite a report from ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler indicating a window of return to be around two to five weeks, Taylor is now calling Wilson “day-to-day.”
“That’s really good news considering you didn’t know which way it would go on Sunday,” Taylor said. “We’ll just continue to take it day to day and see where he’s at this week.”
Bengals defensive tackle Josh Tupou is expected to be out at least a couple of weeks with a calf injury that has him wearing a protective boot, and with D.J. Reader on injured reserve, Cincinnati will be calling on players like Zach Carter and Jay Tufele to step up for more snaps. B.J. Hill ended up playing 66 snaps against the Saints – well more than he’s ever played – and may need to get used to less rotation while the defensive line is down some bodies.
Carter was a third-round draft pick of the Bengals this year, and after not playing the first two games, his playing time on defense has been above 34 percent of the snaps the past four weeks, including a high of 42 percent Sunday at New Orleans. Cincinnati claimed Tufele off waivers Aug. 31 after the Jaguars cut him, and he made his Bengals debut Sunday with 23 snaps (32 percent) on defense. He was a fourth-round draft pick by Jacksonville in 2021 and played four games last season.
“I don’t think it’s easy shoes to fill with anybody like D.J. and Josh,” defensive end Trey Hendrickson said. “I mean, credit to Jay and Zach for stepping up when they didn’t get a ton of reps for the last three weeks. Getting them reps, getting them in the playbook a little more, you know, studying their game, getting them to clean up some of those things, and Sam and I setting edges a little better, we’ll take care of the run.”
If Wilson isn’t able to go, the run defense becomes an even greater area of concern, especially with Atlanta’s run-heavy offense coming to town. Nick Chubb and the Cleveland Browns are up next, too.
The Falcons average 165.2 yards rushing per game, ranked third best in the league, and Cincinnati has allowed 121.0 rushing yards per game (ranked tied for 21st). The Bengals ranked eighth in rushing yards allowed per game (86.0) over the first three weeks before Reader went down, and since then, they are allowing 156 rushing yards per game.
Atlanta is without leading rusher Cordarrelle Patterson (340 yards rushing, three touchdowns), who is on injured reserve because of a knee injury suffered in Week 4, but Tyler Allegeier has started the last two games in his absence and accounts for 235 yards on 54 carries. Quarterback Marcus Mariota adds 206 yards and three touchdowns on 43 carries, and Caleb Huntley has 152 yards on 35 carries.
“We’ve just got to stop the run,” linebacker Germaine Pratt said. “The last two weeks, we haven’t been so firm in the run, and we know that’s a big part of what they do, but we got to step up and make plays and play fundamental football and do our job.”
Pratt said if Wilson can’t play Sunday, the Bengals will have the same “next man up” mentality they had last year when he was out for three games late in the season. They went 2-1 in those games, losing to the 49ers but beating Denver and Baltimore while allowing 90.7 yards rushing over that three-week span. Wilson returned for the AFC North-clinching win over the Chiefs and played throughout the playoffs.
Wilson did not practice Wednesday, and Taylor said his availability Sunday will come down to the feedback he provides throughout the week.
“I think ultimately as every day passes we’ll see how he feels,” Taylor said. “There is nothing we need to rush. It’s a long season. He’s been through similar shoulder issues in the past. We want to make sure we’re handling it the right way and not pushing someone onto the field. It will be a matter of how the trainers feel and how the doctors feel and how he feels as every day passes. It’s transitioned more from week-to-week to day-to-day just as we talk more with Logan and get a feel for it.”
SUNDAY’S GAME
Falcons at Bengals, 1 p.m., Fox, 700, 1530, 102.7, 104.7
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