Updated: 3:50 p.m.
With five cornerbacks fighting injuries, rookie wide receiver Taveon Rogers has been moved to the corner so the Bengals can get through Saturday's 3 p.m. intrasquad scrimmage and Sunday's 6 p.m. mock game at Paul Brown Stadium.
Then a half-hour before the scrimmage the Bengals announced the signing of second-year cornerback T.J. Heath. The 6-0, 188-pound Heath played in five games with the Jaguars last season before they cut him on Wednesday. A free agent out of Jacksonville State, he had two special teams tackles as a rookie.
The 5-11, 190-pound Rogers is a speedster who averaged 17.7 yards per his 71 catches during two years at New Mexico State while returning three kicks for touchdowns this past year.
Not expected to suit up are rookie cornerbacks Dre Kirkpatrick (leg) and Shaun Prater (knee), as well as Brandon Ghee (wrist) and Adam Jones (hamstring). Jason Allen sat out Friday with a bruise. Head coach Marvin Lewis has indicated Jones would be backed off Saturday and play Sunday.
There will be no winners Saturday. The scrimmage puts the offense against the defense in full pads and a portion of the plays have live tackling. There is a play clock, but no game clock and no scoring. The individual stats from the live portion are recorded,
In Sunday's mock game the Bengals split into black and white teams for competitive game simulation. Each team has an offense and a defense. All players wear shoulder pads, but there is no tackling and no individual stats.
The scoring method is no different than an actual NFL game with a game clock and play clock. Down-and-distance rules govern possessions, but coaches may adjust field position, game clock and/or down-and-distance to suit their practice needs. It is Lewis's effort to downplay the scoring and focus on the training aspect of the two events.
INJURY LIST: The Bengals injury list for Saturday's scrimmage shows just how hard hit they've been at running back and cornerback:
Cornerbacks Brandon Ghee, Adam Jones, Jason Allen, Dre Kirkpatrick and Shaun Prater, as well as running backs Bernard Scott and Daniel Herron.
Also out were defensive tackles Pat Sims and Vaughn Meatoga, left end Robert Geathers, and wide receiver Ryan Whalen.
Geathers had a knee scope Friday and should be back for the opener, and Allen, Jones and Whalen should be back soon with nagging pulls and bruises. The others are unknown.
