Here's Why A.J. Green Should Play the Last Two Games for the Bengals

It's been hard to get a consistent story on A.J. Green's ankle injury ever since he underwent preseason surgery. Depending on the week it's either seemed like a return is imminent or like he's most likely done for the year.

It sounds like Green himself wants to play the last two games of the regular season though, and the team seems to be on the same page. That would be a smart move for Green.

One issue to consider with the #Bengals: WR AJ Green, who hasn’t played this year because of an ankle injury, has looked good in practice. Despite the record & time of year, the team hasn’t ruled out playing Green in Week 16 or 17. And sounds like he wants to play, as well.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 15, 2019

The Cincinnati Bengals have nothing to play for but the first-overall pick, and Green likely doesn't want to risk re-injuring the ankle with free agency looming this summer. But having been practicing for so long now, it's hard to imagine that Green isn't pretty much up to speed at this point, and his presence isn't likely to be the difference-maker for the first-overall pick, with the Bengals only having one win heading into Week 15.

The upside of returning to action is worth those small risks as well. He hasn't played since Week 13 of the 2018 season, and teams may be reluctant to take a gamble on a will-be 32-year-old coming off a year-long absence with a big free agent contract unless he proves himself in live game action first.

A Week 16 return would put Green in a dreamy matchup against the Miami Dolphins, giving him a great opportunity to return with a splash. Miami has allowed the NFL's most points (30.7) and 10th-most passing yards (256.6) per game, as well as the third-most adjusted yards per pass attempt (8.5) on the year.

A look at A.J. Green working on the rehab field pic.twitter.com/isTXBDfDCY
— Santa Baby (@Ben_Baby) December 12, 2019

The addition of one more weapon in the passing game may not be what the Bengals need to win games, but at this point winning games doesn't bring them any value, so that's not much of a concern.

For Green's sake, returning to action with a big game or two could be a big difference-maker in the kind of contract he receives heading into the 2020 season.

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Jason Schandl is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Jason Schandl also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username Jaymun. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.