As we hit the lull of the offseason that follows the heights of the draft, rosters and depth charts start to become clearer. Most of the more intriguing free agents have already found their teams for the 2026 season, and teams shift their focus from bringing in new talent to figuring out how to sort what they have now. And boy, after an active free agency and seven draft picks, they have a lot to sort through.
The free agency class (as well as the Dexter Lawrence trade) and their selections in the 2026 draft will be the topic of conversation for the rest of the offseason, and rightfully so. However, their class of undrafted free agents that they brought in directly following the draft is full of interesting prospects, and a few who may even fight their way onto the final 53 with strong showings this summer, be it minicamps, OTAs, training camps, or anything else of that sort.
Cincinnati hasn't shied away from giving undrafted free agents a fair shot on the field. Just last year, Michigan's William Wagner beat out Cal Adomitis for the long-snapper spot, and Notre Dame's Howard Cross III ended up playing in four games. The year before that, preseason darling Maema Njongmeta earned a spot on the roster as a special teamer and depth piece in the linebacker room after putting on some nice performances in their exhibition games, alongside P.J. Jules and Cam Grandy.
In fact, if you keep going back, you'll likely see at least one or two names you recognize from the Bengals' UDFA classes, whether it be special teamers, depth guys, or impactful rotational players.
So, with that in mind, here are three Bengals UDFAs who will make position battles interesting this summer.
All stats courtesy of Pro Football Reference.
LB Jack Dingle, Cincinnati
For all the front office has done this offseason, the linebacker room remains a concern. Even if Demetrius Knight Jr. and Barrett Carter do take that leap and improve significantly in their sophomore campaigns, the depth is shaky at best. Oren Burks was not the underrated signing that fans were hoping he'd be, and Shaka Heyward and Joe Giles-Harris are great special teamers, but virtually unknowns at linebacker.
Enter, Jack Dingle, one of two UDFA linebackers the Bengals brought in following the draft. The other being Eric Gentry, who, in all fairness, is a unicorn of a prospect if you look at his measurables. That said, Dingle is a far better prospect if you're looking for a linebacker who can potentially make an impact now and not a project, which Cincinnati absolutely should be looking for at this point, especially if they aren't going to go for Bobby Wagner or Jordyn Brooks.
Relying on UDFAs to be able to come in and be a net positive, even as a rotational piece, is never a safe bet, but Dingle is someone you should put your chips on. Not only does he have 30+ starts of experience in a Power 5 conference, in the Bengals' own backyard, no less, playing for the Cincinnati Bearcats, but more importantly, Dingle is an absolute freak of an athlete, you can see Stripe Hype's own Matt Fitzgerald talk about it in his piece about the Cincinnati alum.
Dingle almost certainly won't be fighting for a starting role; the coaching staff still has confidence in their 2025 2nd and 4th round picks to take the steps needed to become starting-caliber linebackers. However, he can absolutely give Shaka Heyward and Joe Giles-Harris a run for their money for that LB4/5 spot on the depth chart.
S Isaiah Nwokobia, SMU
While the front office neglected to address the linebacker room adequately, they did not shy away from attacking their deficits at safety. Letting Geno Stone walk is addition by subtraction, but bringing in the top safety in free agency and another former Bearcat in Bryan Cook was their second biggest move of the offseason, right behind the Dexter Lawrence trade.
And they didn't stop there, also going out and grabbing Kyle Dugger, who spent the first five years of his career with New England before being traded to the Steelers shortly into his sixth NFL season. Alongside these moves improving the room by default, Jordan Battle, ideally, should be able to thrive with a better partner-in-crime lined up beside him.
With Cook, Battle, and Dugger locked in, that leaves one or two more open spots. SMU's Isaiah Nwokobia could end up being one of the names to fill those spots. He spent five years with Southern Methodist and had solid production during his time there, with 273 tackles, 11 interceptions, and 14 passes defended. There are two chief concerns when it comes to Nwokobia. One is that his missed tackle rate is a little high at 14.5%, and two is that a labrum injury + surgery kept him from doing athletic testing before the draft, which is part of the reason he fell out of it completely.
Nonetheless, Nwokobia could be an interesting addition to the safety room, especially if his recovery goes smoothly and he's able to clean up some of his tackling issues over the summer. P.J. Jules and Daijahn Anthony are fine contributors on special teams and decent depth pieces, but the former Mustang could realistically beat either one of them out to steal that last safety spot on the roster.
T Corey Robinson II, Arkansas
One thing you can never have too much of is depth on the offensive line. Injuries ravaging the offensive line have been the death of many promising seasons-- including the Bengals themselves in the 2023 postseason. Cincinnati has realized this, and it has become a big part of their draft process. Alongside some good early-round starters who will hopefully become franchise cornerstones, like Amarius Mims and Dylan Fairchild, the Bengals have also made sure to utilize Day 3 to add youthful talent for depth in the trenches.
In the last two drafts on Day 3, they've added former Round 1 prospect Connor Lew, versatile depth piece Brian Parker, and Jalen Rivers, who looked much better at guard than tackle in his limited snaps. That said, most (if not all) of these guys serve as backups for the interior offensive line. When you get to the tackles, the well runs dry. Besides Cody Ford, the Bengals don't really have depth at tackle, which is concerning because injuries aren't exactly unheard of for starters, Amarius Mims and Orlando Brown Jr.
So, that should make former Yellow Jacket and Razorback Corey Robinson II's road to making the team a little easier. As Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic puts it, "The undrafted free agent out of Arkansas doesn’t fit the mammoth size of the rest of the Bengals’ offensive tackles, but his opportunity is just as large." While the measurables aren't eye-popping, Robinson does have a solid body of work during his time playing collegiate football, starting 24 games in three seasons at Georgia Tech and starting all 12 with the Arkansas Razorbacks in his Senior year.
All in all, Robinson was a major contributor on a few offensive lines that served as the foundation for some highly productive offenses, and that much experience + a strong camp could give him the edge to be one of the last names they choose for the final 53-man depth chart.
Those are three Bengals undrafted free agents who could make this summer really interesting and potentially earn a spot on the team. While there are a few other intriguing prospects that they brought in as UDFAs, such as Georgia Tech running back Jamal Haynes or Kentucky tight end Josh Kattus, it felt like these three have the highest chance of working their way beyond the practice squad.
Which UDFA do you think has the best chance to make the team?
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