The Cincinnati Bengals suffered a loss to their running back depth, and potentially their kick returner, for the 2024 season. Chris Evans, a 2021 sixth-round pick out of Michigan, will reportedly miss the entire regular season (per Bleacher Report) with a torn patella tendon suffered in Thursday’s joint practice with the Chicago Bears.
Brown was taken off on a cart and had an air cast on his knee when he left practice. Evans was injured during a kickoff return, then offensive tackle D’Ante Smith was taken off on a cart 10 minutes later.
Whether Evans was going to make the Bengals 53-man roster was up in the air. Zack Moss, Chase Brown, and Trayveon Williams are ahead of Evans on the depth chart, as Evans has played 34 games with one start in his three seasons.
Evans served as the Bengals’ primary kick returner for the first half of the 2022 season and averaged 21.1 yards per return. He has 19 carries for 89 yards in his career and 19 catches for 188 yards and three touchdowns.
