8 former Cincinnati Bengals who still need a team for 2022

Trey Hopkins

It was cool to see Trey Hopkins go from an undrafted talent out of Texas to starting at center for the Bengals in a matter of years. Hopkins was a solid player for Cincinnati, especially in the 2020 season and it was heartbreaking when he tore his ACL at the end of the 2020 season.

Hopkins ended up being healthy enough to play in Week 1 of the 2021 season but he was not the same guy after sustaining the injury. While he wasn’t awful by season’s end, it felt like an upgrade at center was in the works for the team and that’s exactly what ended up happening.

Ted Karras joining the Bengals pretty much cemented the end of Hopkins’ time as a starter, especially with the team being able to save nearly $6 million by releasing the former Longhorn.

Perhaps there’s a chance that Cincinnati brings Hopkins back on a cheaper deal to serve as a backup or maybe he signs elsewhere if a team desperately needs a center. It’ll be interesting to see what’s next for Hopkins.