The Bengals would be the first staff this season to activate a participant from IR. Because it occurs, a punter would be the first such transaction. Brad Robbins is coming off IR and can transfer again onto Cincinnati’s lively roster.
Cincinnati’s full-time punter final season, Robbins already acquired a return designation after struggling an harm this summer season. A quad harm sidelined the younger specialist, however he’ll return to the Bengals’ 53-man roster, which now homes two punters. As a result of the Bengals designated Robbins for return earlier than upon their preliminary 53, he already counted towards their eight-activation restrict. Right now’s transfer doesn’t have an effect on Cincy’s depend.
Robbins joins Ryan Rehkow as punters presently on Cincinnati’s lively roster. Groups nearly by no means preserve two punters on their 53-man roster, and veteran Bengals reporter Jay Morrison notes that is believed to be Rehkow’s job to lose. The Bengals had mentioned persevering with their punter competitors as soon as Robbins recovered. Although, it’s a bit tough to see this being an active-roster battle for an prolonged interval. One figures to be dropped to the apply squad, although that participant would wish to clear waivers first.
Robbins averaged simply 44.3 yards per punt as a rookie. The Michigan alum, who will flip 26 subsequent week, ranked because the league’s third-worst punter by way of gross common in 2023. He positioned 26.3% of his punts contained in the 20-yard line.
The Bengals chosen Robbins in final 12 months’s sixth spherical out of Michigan; the ex-Jim Harbaugh recruit spent six years with the Wolverines and had been this system’s major punter in 4 of these seasons. He’ll vie with Rehkow, a rookie UDFA out of BYU, to win his job again. Rehkow can be tough to unseat, nonetheless, as he’s averaging an NFL-high 58.4 yards per boot. Whereas 13 video games stay, that quantity would smash Ryan Stonehouse‘s single-season file, illustrating the uphill battle Robbins is ready to wage.
