Bengals cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick’s offseason took a bad turn a couple of weeks ago when he broke his right hand in what was described as a “freak accident,” but his recovery has gone well enough that the team had him back in drills on Tuesday.
Kirkpatrick still has a cast on his hand and did not participate in any 11-on-11 work in his first on-field work during Organized Team Activities. Kirkpatrick will likely have the same limitations in place for next week’s mandatory minicamp, which suits him just fine.
“They wouldn’t let me do a whole lot, but it’s coming along,” Kirkpatrick said, via the Dayton Daily News. “I can finally actually squeeze my hand. ... I want to take it slow. I don’t want to just rush out there for what? We ain’t playing no game or nothing. So I don’t want to go out there and re-injure it or get hit on the hand. When I come back I want to be 100 percent.”
The progression should have Kirkpatrick ready to return to his spot in the starting lineup come training camp.
