Monday, August 26, 2002
Stephens facing surgery
Tackle may sit 3-to-4 months
By Mark Curnutte, mcurnutte@enquirer.com
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Backup right tackle Jamain Stephens will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left rotator cuff this week, Bengals trainer Paul Sparling said Sunday.
If his entire rotator cuff needs to be repaired, Stephens could face a three-to-four month rehabilitation.
Starting right guard Mike Goff took a turn at right tackle, working in relief of starter Willie Anderson during Saturday's 31-23 preseason loss to the New Orleans Saints.
Also out for Thursday's preseason finale against the Atlanta Falcons are linebacker Takeo Spikes and safety Stephon Kelly.
Wide receiver Michael Westbrook, who broke a bone in his left wrist on the third day of training camp, is questionable for Thursday and would play in a soft cast. Defensive end Eric Ogbogu, and linebackers Steve Foley and Brian Simmons also are questionable.
Probable are tight end Sean Brewer (bruised left knee) and linebacker Armegis Spearman (groin).
FIRST HALF IS LAST: The Bengals are 2-1 in the preseason, but possibly a more telling way to judge those results is to analyze halftime scores. Most starters for both teams are out of the game by the end of the second quarter.
The Bengals trailed the Saints 21-9, the Buffalo Bills 17-14 and the Indianapolis Colts 10-3 at halftime.
The Bengals have been outscored 48-26 combined in the first two quarters. In the second half, behind quarterbacks Akili Smith and Gus Frerotte, the Bengals have a 43-10 scoring advantage.
YOU'RE MISSING: Seven Bengals players didn't play Saturday, and three of them were the injured starting linebackers — Spikes, Simmons and Foley.
Their absence was felt by the defense in pass-coverage reads and run pursuit. Adrian Ross, Canute Curtis and Spearman started in their place.
SPECIAL TEAMS? Michael Lewis' 81-yard punt return for a Saints touchdown looked familiar.
The Bengals' improved depth in the secondary, especially, has put more good players on special teams, yet the blown coverages keep coming. Another problem visible against the Saints was the Bengals' kickoff return team.
Take away his 30-yard return, and Curtis Keaton averaged just 15 yards per return. The blocking broke down up field, and Keaton confronted tacklers inside the 20-yard line. He lost a fumble on one return.
The good news is the performances of kickers Neil Rackers and Travis Dorsch, who are perfect on a combined seven field-goal attempts. Rackers was good from 18 and 44 yards Saturday, while Dorsch made a 36-yarder.
Rackers also executed a perfect on-side kickoff in the third quarter that the Bengals' Chris Edmonds recovered.
Still, the Bengals figure to release Rackers and keep Dorsch. They didn't draft Dorsch in the fourth round and give him a $300,000-plus signing bonus to cut him.
THE WEEK AHEAD: After a day off Sunday, Bengals players will return for a 1-3 p.m.practice today at Paul Brown Stadium. They have the same schedule for Tuesday. A walkthrough is planned for Wednesday, and the Bengals will close the preseason Thursday night at home against the Atlanta Falcons.
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Stephens facing surgery
