Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengals are cap-constrained now at $17.3M in room, but the books open dramatically to $52.3M next year, making patience and smart cuts this season the key to a spending spree that can fix the roster's holes.

40 contracts expiring

Madden Tools Analysis

Five starting spots have weak depth behind the starter.

Seven picks in this draft cycle, all in the first round, combined with 21 total picks and three first-rounders across the next three years, gives the Bengals exceptional resources to rebuild their trenches and linebacker corps from the ground up.

The roster's clear strength is its skill position trio of Burrow, Chase, and Higgins, while the linebacker corps is the weakest spot on the field with all three starting positions ranking in the bottom quarter of the league.

• LGhigh

  Dylan Fairchild starts at left guard but ranks 30th among starting guards, making this one of the most urgent upgrade targets on the roster.

• LThigh

  Orlando Brown Jr holds the starting spot but ranks 27th at left tackle, leaving Burrow dangerously exposed on his blind side.

• MIKEhigh

  Barrett Carter starts at MIKE but ranks dead last among starting middle linebackers, and the depth behind him offers no real upgrade.

• SAMhigh

  Oren Burks starts at SAM and the position ranks 14th of 16 in starter quality, making this a clear weak link in the linebacker corps.

• WILLhigh

  Demetrius Knight Jr starts at WILL but ranks 28th among starters, meaning all three linebacker spots are simultaneously among the worst in the league.

• RGmedium

  Dalton Risner holds the starting right guard job but ranks 24th at the position, extending the offensive line's problems across every interior spot.

• RTmedium

  Amarius Mims starts at right tackle and the position ranks 21st, though at 23 with a Star dev trait he carries meaningful upside for improvement.

• HBlow

  Chase Brown is a capable 82 overall starter but the position ranks 22nd overall, and depth behind him is thin beyond Samaje Perine.

• LEDGElow

  Cashius Howell starts at left edge and ranks 23rd, though his Star dev trait and age give him a legitimate path to becoming a difference-maker.

• REDGElow

  Shemar Stewart starts at right edge and ranks 20th, with Boye Mafe serving as the more experienced option behind him.

• SSlow

  Kyle Dugger holds the starting strong safety spot but ranks 23rd, though the depth here is actually solid with Jordan Battle and the position's overall depth ranks 6th.

• TElow

  Mike Gesicki starts at tight end but ranks 22nd among starters, and the depth behind him drops off sharply to limit any in-house solution.

• 70T.J. SlatonDTT.J. Slaton is a rotational 70 overall defensive tackle sitting behind three higher-rated options on the depth chart, and releasing him frees $5.7M against $3.4M in dead money.Frees $5.7M · $3.4M dead
• 62Josh JohnsonQBJosh Johnson is a 62 overall third-string quarterback at the end of his career, and releasing him frees $1.3M against only $200K in dead money.Frees $1.3M · $200.0K dead
• 68Drew SampleTEDrew Sample is a 68 overall tight end who appears only as a fullback reserve on the depth chart, and releasing him frees $2.5M against just $300K in dead money.Frees $2.5M · $300.0K dead
• 58Sean CliffordQBSean Clifford is a 58 overall third-string quarterback with no path to snaps, and releasing him frees $1.1M with zero dead money.Frees $1.1M · $0 dead
• 66Jalen DavisCBJalen Davis is a 66 overall cornerback entering the later stage of his career with limited depth-chart value, and releasing him frees $1.3M against only $180K in dead money.Frees $1.3M · $180.0K dead

The Bengals are built around one of the most explosive quarterback-receiver combinations in the league, with Joe Burrow at 97 overall and Ja'Marr Chase at 99 giving the offense a ceiling few franchises can match. Tee Higgins at 87 adds a genuine second threat, Chase Brown profiles as a reliable running back, and the defensive interior fronted by Dexter Lawrence II and Jonathan Allen is legitimately good. The problems are concentrated in the trenches and at linebacker, where all three starting spots rank in the bottom quarter of the league and the offensive line has meaningful weaknesses at left tackle, left guard, and right guard around young right tackle Amarius Mims. Jonathan Allen is entering the later stage of his career, and succession on the interior will need planning within the next couple of seasons. Cap room sits at $17.3M now but opens considerably to $52.3M next year, which is when the real roster-building work begins. With three first-round picks across the next three draft cycles and 21 total picks in that window, the foundation for a sustained contention window exists, but the path requires aggressive offensive line investment and linebacker reconstruction before Burrow's prime is wasted on a porous supporting cast.

The Bengals were founded in 1968 by legendary coach Paul Brown, who had been fired by the Cleveland Browns in 1963. Brown's ownership group received AFL approval on May 23, 1967, the team began play in 1968, and joined the NFL in the 1970 merger. Brown chose the same shade of orange as Cleveland and named the team 'Bengals' to link it to earlier Cincinnati pro teams of the 1930s-40s. The franchise's golden era came in the 1980s: after adopting the iconic orange tiger-striped helmets in 1981, the Bengals, led by QB Ken Anderson (1981 NFL MVP), reached Super Bowl XVI, losing 26-21 to the 49ers. Under QB Boomer Esiason (1988 NFL MVP) and coach Sam Wyche, they returned to Super Bowl XXIII after 1988, losing 20-16 to the 49ers on a late Joe Montana-to-John Taylor touchdown. After a 1990 playoff appearance, the team collapsed into 14 consecutive non-winning seasons, earning the nickname 'The Bungles.' A 2-14 finish in 2002 led to the hiring of Marvin Lewis in 2003, who restored respectability but never won a playoff game across 16 seasons. The drafting of Joe Burrow first overall in 2020 transformed the franchise: in 2021 the Bengals won their first playoff game since 1990 and reached Super Bowl LVI, losing 23-20 to the Los Angeles Rams. They returned to the AFC Championship Game in 2022 but missed the playoffs in 2023, 2024, and 2025.