Bengals C.J. Uzomah is determined to face the Bengals in Super Bowl LVI
Cincinnati Bengals' tight end C.J. Uzomah is in a race against time to recover from injury ahead of Super Bowl LVI, but he is most definitely determined.
With less than a week to go before Sunday's big game, one of the Bengals' key players in a race against time to recover from injury.
Bengals C.J. Uzomah is determined to play the Super Bowl
If there is one thing that we can take from Bengals' tight end C.J. Uzomah after his comments during Monday's virtual media day, it's that one way or another he intends to play in Super Bowl LVI. Having sustained a sprain to his left knee during the first half of the AFC Championship Game against the Kansas City Chiefs back on January 30th, Uzomah was adamant about his intentions for Sunday. "I'm not missing the biggest game of my life," Uzomah said. "I'm not missing it. That's my approach going every day into rehab."
What's "Uzomah's current situation?
Having not participated in practice last week, Uzomah was in actuality doing rehab work with Cincinnati's training staff. While he did not definitively say that he would be playing on Sunday, Uzomah did indicated that it was a "day-to-day" situation where his injury prognosis is concerned. "My mind is yes," Uzomah said of playing. "But for the sake of everyone else, I'm just going to say day-to-day." Should the tight end be available when the weekend arrives, he will undoubtedly be a major boost to the Bengals line up. Having totaled 13 catches for a 135 yards and one touch down, Uzomah has been a central part of the Bengals' best post season run in more than three decades.
What exactly? happened to C.J. Uzomah?
Though at first it seemed insignificant when the Bengals' tight end jumped for a pass that fell incomplete, the harsh reality soon became clear when he could be seen in visible pain. Indeed Uzomah clutched a towel and proceeded to weep as he was carted off the field during the AFC Championship game. He later explained that they were tears of frustration as he wanted to help his teammates reach their first Super Bowl in 33 years. "I was carted off the field, and I had tears in my eyes because I wasn't being able to play, more so than just the pain," the tight end said Monday. "I was upset I wasn't going to be able to go out there and compete with the guys and help on the field, win the AFC championship."
Fortunately - or unfortunately - this is not the first time that Uzomah has been in the hands of training staff with the pressure on. Back in 2020 he suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in Week 2 of the season. The battle to return was long, but in the end he did just that and has started every game since. For the moment, all he can do is trust in the staff, do the work and hope that when Sunday rolls around he is ready to go. "It's been a grind," Uzomah said. "It's been a lot of early mornings, late nights of just rehabbing and fighting through some stuff. But I feel really good. I feel really, really good."