Cincinnati Bengals' Jeremy Hill opts to have season-ending ankle surgery

Note: This story was updated on Nov. 13.

NASHVILLE – Jeremy Hill went from the Cincinnati Bengals' starting running back to injured reserve in a week's time due to an ankle injury he said he was battling for some time – but one head coach Marvin Lewis was surprised ended the running back's season.

Hill was suddenly placed on injured reserve on Saturday before the team left for Nashville after not practicing all week. He was a surprise inactive on Nov. 5 in Jacksonville after injuring the ankle during a Nov. 4 practice.

"Jeremy thinks he needs to have ankle surgery," Lewis said Monday. "Yeah, I think I would be (surprised). I think he's consulted a couple physicians, both said that this was something that could wait until after the season but he just felt like it was causing too much discomfort."

On Nov. 8, Hill met with the media and sounded like a player ready to get back to the team at some point.

"I'm excited about the opportunity we have this week and we've got to show that and go out there and practice enthusiasm and energy and go out there just get this thing going back in the right direction," Hill said just three days before his season ended. "We've shown our glimpses, made plays, done the thing, we just can't sustain so we gotta do whatever it takes to give that effort out there on Sunday."

In that same session, Hill said he had been dealing with the ankle problem for some time, but he had never appeared on an injury report.

Lewis, on the other hand, wasn't as sure about that.

"I don't think he had any instance of (a problem) since this August when he rolled his ankle in training camp, or whatever it was, training camp or warmups in a game -- I can't remember what it was," Lewis said. "One of those times in the preseason. But that's the only instance he's had this fall."

Hill, 25, had seen his role greatly reduced in 2017 after the team drafted rookie Joe Mixon in the second round out of Oklahoma. The season began with a three-back rotation with Hill, Mixon and Giovani Bernard, but after new offensive coordinator Bill Lazor took over in Week 3, Hill essentially was a starter in name only.

He finished his 2017 season with 116 yards on 37 carries and no touchdowns.

A second-round draft pick out of LSU in 2014, Hill burst onto the scene with a 1,124-yard, nine-touchdown rookie season. He followed that up in 2015 with an 11-touchdown, 794-yard year in 2015.

But, the Bengals had grown frustrated with back-to-back seasons of averaging a total of 3.7 yards per carry, leading to the drafting of Mixon.

The club signed rookie Brandon Wilson to the 53-man roster to fill Hill's roster spot.

Wilson, a sixth-round draft choice out of Houston, was on the practice squad after starting his year on the non-fotball injury list due to a knee injury.

The Bengals traded up in the sixth round to take Wilson, who they feel is a versatile player in the secondary.

The team also decided to waive kicker Marshall Koehn, as they determined that Randy Bullock was healthy enough to dress and kick against the Titans. To fill his spot, the club promoted rookie defensive tackle Josh Tupou off the practice squad. The extra body was needed on the defensive line as tackle Pat Sims was ruled out with a calf injury.

Tupou is a college free agent from the University of Colorado.