Safety Bryan Cook missed his first game with the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 4 and is growing frustrated with his ankle injury.
Cook practiced as a limited participant Oct. 8 but doesn’t know if he’ll be able to play on Oct. 11 against the Miami Dolphins.
“I am kind of frustrated, but I am trying to figure it out,” Cook said.
Cook wants to be back on the field, but he doesn’t want it to come as a detriment to his teammates. Cook is a team captain and one of the best tacklers. The Bengals could really use him back on defense as they’re currently riding a two-game losing streak, but he needs to be able to do his job at a high level to be on the field this weekend.
Cook is testing out his ankle during practice and seeing what he can tolerate from a pain
standpoint.
“I want to be playing, but I can’t be selfish in that aspect,” Cook said. “But at the same time, I feel if I'm not being who they need me to be on the team, on the field, I'm hurting my teammates. So, I never let that happen. It's always team first at the end of the day. So, if I can be what I need to be for my team, I'll be out there, and if I feel like I'm giving them less than myself, I’ll never let that happen.”
If Cook is unable to play through his ankle injury, the Bengals could opt to rest him knowing the bye week is on deck.
Miami is 0-4 and ranks last in the NFL in points per game (11.5). No game should be dubbed as an “easy” game, but the Bengals shouldn’t have an issue keeping the Dolphins’ woeful offense in check.
Bengals coach Zac Taylor will meet with his medical staff several times before the game against the Dolphins. Cincinnati will give Cook as long as he needs to rehab his ankle, and the team has until 90 minutes before kickoff to decide.
If the Bengals do opt to rest Cook, he won’t play a game until Oct. 25, and it’s a game the Bengals must win. Cincinnati travels to Baltimore after the bye week and needs Cook at full strength to beat the Ravens on the road.
“I am trying to do everything I can to be out there," Cook said. “That is the frustrating part. You want to be out there. You want to help your teammates. I know they depend on me in certain aspects. Certain plays that wind up being mistakes, I feel like I could have been out there to say something to correct it before (the play). Not being out there, it sucked.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Bryan Cook ‘frustrated’ by ankle injury, hopeful to play vs. Dolphins
