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Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said he was surprised when he learned that Hill was opting for season-ending surgery on his injured ankle, Paul Dehner Jr. of The Cincinnati Enquirerreports.
The Bengals for some reason thought Hill would try to play through the injury and put off surgery until the offseason -- an approach that wouldn't make much sense for an impending free agent with a very limited role. This presumably seals Hill's fate in Cincinnati, where the Bengals will happily move forward with Joe Mixon and Giovani Bernard, likely hoping that offensive line renovations can get the running game back on track next offseason. Hill hasn't done much of note besides scoring goal-line touchdowns since his rookie season, but he should at least have time to get healthy before 2018 training camp, at which point he'll likely be competing for a role with a new team. It's hard to imagine any franchise would sign him with a clear-cut lead role in mind. Hill will finish out the 2017 campaign on injure reserve.
