CINCINNATI, Aug. 1 -- The Cincinnati Bengals Wednesday officially placed veteran wide receiver Darnay Scott on injured reserve. He suffered a fractured tibia and fibula in his left leg during a Tuesday morning practice and underwent surgery Tuesday night at Deaconess Hospital in Cincinnati to insert a rod into his lower leg.
Bengals team physician Dr. Robert Heidt Jr., said the procedure "went absolutely as well as you would hope it would."
Bengals trainer Paul Sparling said it's a career-threatening injury and will take Scott about three months before he can begin rehabilitation workouts.
Sparling told the Cincinnati Enquirer that the healing process and rehabilitation depend on whether Scott suffered any additional muscle, ligament or cartilage damage. Early indications are that he has no injuries beside the broken bones.
"It's going to be a very big challenge for him to come back and perform at the level he needs to," Sparling said. "Look at the demands on Darnay and what we've got to do get him back to that thoroughbred, that speed guy. He's got a long road ahead of him."
The 28-year-old Scott set career highs with 68 catches and 1,022 receiving yards last season while tying a career best with seven touchdown receptions.
Scott was expected to join Florida State rookie Peter Warrick, the fourth overall pick in the April draft, as the primary targets for quarterback Akili Smith.
Earlier this summer, the Bengals released veteran Carl Pickens, who signed with the Tennessee Titans.
Veteran defensive back Tom Carter said Scott's loss hurts the secondary as well.
"Darnay is one of the handful of guys in the league who can make something happen by himself," Carter said. "It's hurting everybody right now, but we'll go back to work, because we've all seen it before."
A second-round draft pick in 1994 out of San Diego State, Scott made at least 50 catches in each of the last five seasons.
