Cincinnati Bengals star defensive lineman DJ Reader will miss the remainder of the season after suffering a torn quad during Saturday’s win over the Minnesota Vikings.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo reported the news.
Reader went down on the first defensive drive of the game and needed a cart to leave the field, with the team’s instant declaration of his missing the remainder of the game a tell as to the severity.
Arguably the best nose tackle in football, Reader suffered the same injury in the opposite leg a few years ago and eventually came all the way back to full form.
But given the repeated injury, extensive rehab time for an issue so serious and the fact he’ll turn 30 next year, it’s hard to judge how things will play out. Reader is set to be a free agent after the season, so this injury will weigh heavily on those proceedings.
As for the Bengals, a platoon of Josh Tupou and others will attempt to fill the void, though it’s something opponents will gameplan to attack each week now.
