For the first time in quite awhile the Bengals prospects are looking pretty damn good.They're 7-5, just a half game out of the Wild Card race, and they're looking at ten days off after playing (and winning) three games in just twelve days. That's awesome news for a team that's been as banged up as the Bengals. Here's the early health outlook for Oakland:
- Eric Ghiaciuc (pictured at right) was the only Bengals injury last night. He suffered a sprained knee and was replaced by Ben Wilkerson, who saw his first NFL action last night, and performed extremely well. Ghiaciuc is questionable for Oakland, but that's not as bad as it sounds because Rich Braham will almost certainly be back by then, and the aforementioned Ben Wilkerson looked more than capable. Plus it's Oakland. If Ben Wilkerson has to play against anybody Oakland is a pretty good opponent.
- Bobbie Williams will be back from his appendix surgery. He's been replaced by Stacy Andrews, a guy who's 6'7, 350 pounds. Andrews has played like a monster, but Williams is a capable vet. The Bengals are pretty much fine here with either guy, and the upside to Williams getting hurt has been the discovery that Andrews is good enough to see game time.
- Deltha O'Neal will be healthy. The defense has been great the past two games, but it's going to be even better when Deltha O'Neal lines up opposite of Jonathan Joseph instead of Tory James. I'm sure James will still see plenty of playing time, but it'll be less than he sees with O'Neal hurt, and that'll only help the Bengals. James is a lot more palatable an option when he's only playing part time.
- Kelley Washington will be back. Maybe he can get some of Chris Henry's playing time, since Henry seems to be afraid of getting hit lately.
- John Thornton will be back. Not really sure if this is a plus though. The defensive line was outstanding last night without him.
- Rich Braham is questionable, but my guess is he'll be ready for Oakland or Indy. Holding him out until Indy might not be a bad idea if he's not totally healed up.
- Levi Jones is still questionable. Whitworth has been a great replacement, so I'd rather not see Levi back until he's 100%. No reason to risk further injury, and Levi should be a big boost down the stretch.
