Cincinnati Bengals cornerback has spent previous weeks rehabilitating his knee on the side with trainers. At one point he was expected to return earlier during the offseason, but a slight setback shifted those plans. According to Dre Kirkpatrick's twitter account Monday morning, the Bengals first-round pick is returning to practice this week.

Follow @DreKirkSWAG Dre Kirkpatrick

@DreKirkSWAG This is my first week back at practice I'm so happy to be back out there with the guys and get back to work



However don't expect Kirkpatrick to return this week or next. Obviously the Cincinnati Bengals would like to approach Kirkpatrick's recovery with caution to avoid additional setbacks. Plus Kirkpatrick didn't have a training camp and very little preseason to get into football shape; though he likely has had enough time to learn the playbook, he hasn't had the field time to implement what he's learned.

Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis argued two weeks ago that it would be more realistic to see Kirkpatrick on the field after the October 28 bye week.