Zac Taylor Reveals Key Bengals Injury Entering First AFC North Battle of 2026 Season

The Bengals added an injury to the ledger after Sunday's game. Zac Taylor noted that third wide receiver Andrei Iosivas tore a ligament in his thumb in the Texans game and is on injured reserve after going through surgery.

He is missing a minimum of four games, but there is no set timeline for his return. It leaves a big opportunity for Dohnte Meyers and Colbie Young to fill in.

"Unfortunate for him," Taylor said about Iosivas before touching on Hill and noting Burrow is sore again this week. "B.J. Hill will continue to work him through the week and see where he ends up for this game. As we manage him, Jonathan Allen could be out today, management, and I think that was it. If there are any other questions about the guys, you can let me know."

His team is one of eight remaining undefeated squads and trying to stay alone at the top of the AFC North this week.

A Key Injury

Aug 22, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle B.J. Hill (92) walks on the field before the game against the Chicago Bears at Paycor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Burrow (back) may be limited this week or he may not, but he seemingly came out of the Week 2 win over Houston feeling good about his health.

"Yeah, I'm good to go. It's a little sore after the game, but no problems. There are a lot of people across this league playing with tight backs. No big deal," Burrow noted. "I want to do that every week, I want to do that every day. I love this game. I love what I do. I love who I do it with. I just want to be out there with the guys, and nothing is going to stop me from doing that."

Cincinnati is trying to avoid the health bug bites and win what is really a battle of attrition across an NFL season. This team is showing it has enough talent to win any way across its opening two games. Now it's about continuing to stack consistency and chemistry. Staying healthy is imperative for that plan.

They have the easiest remaining schedule and a defense that looks ready to complement the offense as a fellow top-10 unit. They are top five in a few key categories so far: Eight sacks (1st), two offensive TDs allowed (T-2nd), zero pass TDs allowed (T-1st), 74.5 rush YPG allowed (3rd), four takeaways (T-3rd).

The offense usually plays much better after the first two weeks under Burrow as well.

"No different than this week," Taylor said about the great defensive fronts his team has faced so far. "This week's going to be very similar. So again, it's good for our guys to see. And I thought, Joe, you know, the movement, the pocket early in the year. Sometimes it takes some reps versus a live rush where you can really be tackled to kind of gain that. I saw some of that from him, especially there second, third, fourth quarter, which is encouraging to see this early in the season. And I think that gives him a lot of confidence that he's already at that spot where he can create some plays."

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