Bengals' Tee Higgins set to play, all smiles after 3 weeks out - ESPN

CINCINNATI — Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins flashed a big smile at his locker before the team took off for Los Angeles.

After three weeks out with a quadriceps injury, Higgins is expected to play Sunday against the Chargers, coach Zac Taylor said after Friday's practice.

And nobody is looking forward to it more than Higgins is.

«I'm very excited [to] get back out there with the guys,» Higgins told ESPN in his first interview since suffering the injury. «Just sitting there watching, I hate it, you know what I'm saying? Not being able to contribute to help get a win, it sucks. So I'm very excited to go out there and fight.»

Higgins has been a limited participant at practice this week but does not have an injury designation for Sunday's game. During the portion of Friday's practice open to the media, Higgins was in uniform and sported a helmet but did agility and conditioning drills.

«Anything you saw in practice with him doing rehab, doing individual stuff was all stuff we had coordinated all week to make sure that he was in a great spot,» Taylor said. «And right now, we're in a great spot.»

Also, Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson is expected to play Sunday despite missing practice Friday. Hendrickson, who leads the NFL with 11 sacks this season, will travel separately to Los Angeles on Saturday for personal reasons.

Higgins suffered his injury in practice Oct. 25, two days before the Bengals' loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. The injury continued to linger over the next couple of weeks, he said.

«I was still feeling it,» Higgins said. «But it felt amazing this week, and I'm ready to go.»

The fifth-year wide receiver has had to battle soft-tissue injuries throughout his career. This season, he suffered a hamstring