The Bengals released Anderson (knee) on Monday with a failed physical designation.
Though Anderson missed most of his final season at Oklahoma with a torn ACL, the Bengals thought enough of his potential to select him in the sixth round of the 2019 draft. He was cleared for full activity last August, but he appeared in just two preseason games before he tore the ACL in the same knee again. Anderson has worked hard in his rehab over the past year, but he didn't make enough progress in his recovery to get the green light for training camp. Unless another team puts in a waiver claim for Anderson, he'll revert to the Bengals' injured reserve list and miss at least the first eight weeks of the season.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Shifts to PUP list
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The Bengals placed Anderson (knee) on the active/PUP list Wednesday, Jay Morrison of The Athletic reports.
Anderson saw his rookie campaign cut short last August when he re-tore the ACL in his right knee, the same injury that ended his collegiate career at Oklahoma. The 2019 sixth-round pick has been participating in limited on-field work for his rehab since March, including running and cutting, but he's not yet ready to return to practice with teammates. When healthy, Anderson could compete for the No. 2 role behind Joe Mixon, but if he isn't ready to go by Week 1, he'll face the risk of starting the season on the reserve/PUP list and missing at least six games.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Approaching rehab with caution
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Anderson (knee) is taking a slower approach to his current ACL rehab, perhaps hoping for a mid-August debut, Geoff Hobson of the Bengals' official website reports. "I'm taking everything slow," Anderson said. "Doing it the right way, taking as much time as I need no matter what."
Once viewed as a potential first-round pick, Anderson fell to the sixth round of the 2019 NFL Draft after suffering a torn ACL in September 2018, his third season-ending injury in a span of four years at Oklahoma. He then re-tore the same ligament in the final week of the 2019 preseason, landing on injured reserve for his rookie campaign. Anderson has since resumed running and cutting, but he's in no rush to get back on the practice field. He and fellow 2019 draft pick Trayveon Williams could end up battling for the No. 3 running back job behind veterans Joe Mixon and Giovani Bernard, assuming the latter isn't an offseason cap casualty.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Placed on IR
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Anderson (knee) has been placed on injured reserve after suffering a torn ACL.
Anderson was looking at a depth running back role on the Bengals' active roster before his knee injury. He'll now be out for the season and will set his sights on recovering for 2020. His injury means that Trayveon Williams will be the final back on Cincinnati's active roster behind Joe Mixon and Giovani Bernard.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Confirmed with ACL tear
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Anderson's injury has been confirmed as a torn ACL in his right knee, Jay Morrison of The Athletic reports.
Anderson tore the same ligament last September at Oklahoma, marking his third season-ending injury in four collegiate campaigns. He managed just nine yards on 13 carries during the preseason, but he showed some aptitude in the passing game with five catches for 58 yards on six targets. Once viewed as a potential first-round pick, Anderson was selected in the sixth round and now will miss his entire rookie season.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Possibly suffers another ACL tear
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The Bengals believe Anderson (knee) suffered another ACL tear, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com reports.
Anderson suffered the same injury in the same right knee last season at Oklahoma, bringing his injury-plagued college career to an early end. The rookie sixth-round pick will be placed on injured reserve if the ACL tear is confirmed.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Injures right knee
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Anderson won't return to Thursday's preseason game against the Colts due to a right knee injury, Jay Morrison of The Athletic reports.
Anderson tore the ACL in his right knee in the second game of the 2018 season, which would mark his final collegiate contest. After declaring for the NFL and getting drafted in the sixth round by the Bengals in April, he kicked off training camp on the non-football injury list and didn't make an in-game appearance until preseason Week 3. With a potential aggravation on tap, Anderson's prospects to kick off the campaign now are in question.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Mixed bag in NFL debut
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Anderson (knee) made his NFL debut in Thursday's 25-23 preseason loss to the Giants, gaining seven yards on eight carries and catching all four of his targets for 51 yards.
Anderson turned in a forgettable performance on the ground in his return from a torn ACL, but the rookie was effective as a pass-catcher out of the backfield. The 2019 sixth-rounder out of Oklahoma was once a highly-touted prospect before his injury troubles, so Cincinnati will likely hang onto Anderson and allow him to get back to full strength in a depth role behind workhorse Joe Mixon and pass-catcher Giovani Bernard. Such an arrangement wouldn't offer much short-term fantasy value, though.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Sitting out second preseason game
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Anderson (knee) won't play in Thursday's preseason game against Washington, but he will play the following week against the Giants, Jay Morrison of The Athletic reports.
Given that at one time Anderson was a candidate to be put on the PUP list, this is certainly a good sign in terms of his recovery from a torn right ACL injury suffered last year.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Not playing Saturday
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Anderson (knee) won't play in Saturday's preseason tilt against the Chiefs, Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic reports.
Anderson is only a day removed from being cleared to practice, so it's no surprise that he isn't yet ready for preseason action. The rookie sixth-round pick is coming back from a torn ACL, and it wouldn't be surprising if he were limited throughout the entire preseason. Anderson will focus his attention towards getting healthy for the regular season.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Cleared to work
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Anderson (knee) was cleared to practice Wednesday after passing his physical.
Per Jay Morrison of The Athletic, Anderson is no longer eligible to land on the regular season PUP list now that he's been reinstated to the roster in training camp. As things currently stand, Anderson and fellow rookie Trayveon Williams are slated to back up Joe Mixon and Giovani Bernard (hamstring), the clear top two backs on Cincinnati's depth chart. Anderson, who fell to the Bengals in the sixth round of April's draft as a result of tearing the ACL in his right knee last September, will likely need time to get back to full speed, so he may only be asked to handle limited snaps during the preseason. Once the injury is further in the rear-view mirror, the 6-foot, 224-pound Anderson has some upside, especially in the event that Mixon suffers an injury of his own down the road.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Still not practicing
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Anderson (knee) hasn't yet practiced, but he also hasn't yet been placed on the PUP list, Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com reports.
Hobson speculates that Anderson won't practice at all during training camp, so as to preserve the Bengals' option of putting him on the PUP list to begin the season. That would allow them to keep four backs in total without using up an extra active roster slot.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Lands on NFI list
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Anderson (knee) was placed on the non-football injury list Thursday.
Anderson was a candidate to land on the PUP list as he recovers from a torn ACL, but he instead was placed on the NFI list. The rookie sixth-round pick originally believed he would be 100 percent healthy for the start of training camp, but he'll instead require some additional recovery time.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: May land on PUP list
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Anderson (knee) may start the season on the PUP list, Paul Dehner Jr. of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
Anderson said in May that he expected to be 100 percent healthy for the start of training camp, but there's no reason for the Bengals to rush him back when they have Joe Mixon and Giovani Bernard at the top of the depth chart, with fellow rookie Trayveon Williams also in the mix for a job. In fact, the team may prefer to stash Anderson on the PUP list even if he's technically healthy enough to practice. The Oklahoma product suffered a torn ACL in September, marking his third season-ending injury in the past four years. Previously viewed as a likely Day 1 or 2 pick, Anderson instead fell to Cincinnati in the sixth round just 29 spots after the team drafted Williams.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Hopes to be ready for camp
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Anderson (knee) expects to be 100 percent healthy for the start of training camp, Fletcher Page of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
Coach Zac Taylor didn't sound quite as confident, simply noting that the Bengals will see where Anderson is at when training camp rolls around. The rookie sixth-round pick will be held out of spring practices while he recovers from the torn ACL he suffered in early September. The typical timeline from an ACL rehab would seem to put him on track for Week 1, but it's worth noting that Anderson suffered two other season-ending injuries during his time at Oklahoma. It also isn't clear if there's any backfield role available in the Cincinnati offense, as Joe Mixon and Giovani Bernard are locked in atop the depth chart. The Bengals might consider stashing Anderson on the PUP list or injured reserve even if his recovery moves along on schedule.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: No participation in minicamp
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Anderson (knee) did not practice during the Bengals' rookie minicamp this week, Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com reports.
Anderson, who was the Bengals' sixth-round pick in this year's draft, is still working his way back from a torn ACL he suffered last September. The expectation has been that the tailback will be ready for Week 1, but it remains unclear exactly where he is in the recovery process.
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Bengals' Rodney Anderson: Fall stops in Cincinnati
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The Bengals selected Anderson (knee) in the sixth round of the 2019 NFL Draft, 211th overall.
Anderson (6-foot, 224 pounds) suffered a torn ACL in early September, but he wasn't able to run at all before the draft and carries some ambiguity in his status heading into the fall. The line for some time was that Anderson should be ready for Week 1, but in some sense it's odd that was ever up to question. If the former Oklahoma star isn't damaged goods for the long term, then this is pretty obviously a strong pick for Cincinnati. If Anderson had never torn that ACL or suffered his two other season-ending injuries (broken vertebra, broken leg), then there's a real chance he's making a case for the first round. In a thin running back class notably lacking upside, Anderson was the rare type that held a workhorse frame along with an explosive three-down skill set. His 200 career carries went for 1,285 yards (6.4 YPC) and 16 touchdowns while he added 17 receptions for 281 yards and five touchdowns, and he clearly possesses standout speed given that he ran away from the Georgia defense in 2017. That he fell this far might indicate that NFL doctors question the stability of his knee, but if Anderson is healthy then he could be a problem for Gio Bernard, let alone earlier fellow sixth-round pick Trayveon Williams.
