Zac Taylor on Chidobe Awuzie's Progression: 'Just be Real Cautious With it'

Cincinnati is taking the necessary time with the cornerback's return.

Author:
Russ Heltman
Publish date:
Aug 10, 2023 9:25 AM EDT

In this story:

CINCINNATI — Bengals head coach Zac Taylor dove into Chidobe Awuzie's ramp-up for the 2023 season with a clear tone: Patience.

The team is staying "cautious" with it's top cornerback.

"So just be real cautious with it," Taylor said. "What you've seen is that he's had a chance to do the rehab, where he knows what the drill is and what's going to happen, and now he's starting to get more into corner phase where he can start doing some things where he doesn't know what the receiver's gonna do. And so we're easing him into that and that's why you're seeing some of the receivers and the routes on air to get that work.

"That'll continue to mildly ramp up over time. We're not going to rush him into team drills until I feel like it's time to do that. But the reason for that is he's so experienced in our system and played a lot of football for us that we feel like, at the right time, when he comes back, he'll be mentally ready to hit the ground running in terms of the scheme and all those types of reps."

Awuzie went down with a torn ACL last Halloween against Cleveland and has been fighting back to full health since. Cincinnati is banking on the veteran to spearhead a talented young corner group in a contract season.

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