CLEVELAND _ The Bengals not only had to cope with falling to 0-3 in the AFC North after Monday night’s 32-13 loss to the Browns, but they left First Energy Stadium deeply concerned about No. 1 cornerback Chidobe Awuzie’s knee injury sustained late in the first half.
“It’s not great, but nothing is confirmed,’ said head coach Zac Taylor. “It’s tough. Chido is one of the hardest workers on the team. He’s a great man of character. He gives his heart and soul to this. To see a guy like that hit like that, it’s tough.”
You got a sense for how much his teammates think of him as they flocked to the media tent to check on him.
“Unbelievable, that hurts really bad. He is an unbelievable player and I wish him all the best. We are going to miss him and I do not know what happened. I just saw him on crutches and this is really tough,” said left end Sam Hubbard. “If you know anything about Chido, it means the world to him. He is one of the most reliable teammates that I have ever played with and not much to say other than he means a lot to this team.”
The Bengals are reeling at cornerback. The other starter, Eli Apple (hamstring) was inactive and second-rounder Cam Taylor-Britt made his first NFL start in his second game. Then late in the third quarter Awuzie’s backup, Tre Flowers, limped off the field with a hamstring injury and he was still limping in the locker room an hour later.
At the end, first-round safety Dax Hill found himself lined up on one of the game’s great route runners, Amari Cooper, for the 53-yard pass that set up the Browns’ last touchdown.
“Two rookie corners on the outside in this kind of game,” said slot cornerback Mike Hilton. “It’s good experience for them, but it’s a tough situation to be in.”
Cooper romped for 131 yards on five catches, Donovan Peoples-Jones went for 81 more and the ultimate backup quarterback, Jacoby Brissett, went for a season-high 278 yards and out-Burrowed Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow with a 133.7 passer rating on 17 of 22 passing.