After having the worst season of the Joe Burrow era since the franchise QB's rookie year -- when he got injured, and the team went 4-11-1 -- the Cincinnati Bengals will have a lot of work to do this offseason to be the contenders they're supposed to be with Burrow, Chase, and Higgins all here and all in their prime.
To the disappointment of some fans, a coaching change will not be included in this offseason cycle for the Bengals, as team owner Mike Brown put out a statement expressing confidence in both Head Coach Zac Taylor and Director of Player Personnel and de facto GM Duke Tobin following the season finale.
Nonetheless, even if fans do believe that this team is hopeless with Taylor at the helm, a strong offseason with great free agency signings and a solid draft that grabs a couple of Week 1 contributors can turn everything around.
Just look at the 2021 offseason, after an awful season, they went out and made signings like Trey Hendrickson, Mike Hilton, Chidobe Awuzie, and more. On top of that, they got Ja'Marr Chase and Evan McPherson in the draft, culminating in a complete turnaround that ended in a Super Bowl run.
While they have had some solid signings and draft picks since then, they haven't had a truly complete offseason since that 2021 one that convinced everyone that Duke Tobin was the Bengals' secret weapon to building a contending team, so they're overdue. If they're going to have a destiny-shifting offseason like they did to kick off the decade, here are some things that are going to need to happen.
All stats courtesy of Pro Football Reference.
Re-sign G Dalton Risner
This should be the easiest task for the front office to accomplish over the next couple of months. This was the best offensive line Burrow has had in his career so far, and the guard they had signed shortly before their season opener in Cleveland had a career year, where he was arguably the best pass-blocker on the team.
Risner finished the season with high marks from Pro Football Focus, including 68.2 run block grade and 71 pass block grade, while only being faulted for two sacks the whole season.
Let’s update the below Dalton Risner tweet.
— Gridiron Grading (@GridironGrading) December 23, 2025
Here is where PFF ranks him in pass blocking grade on true pass sets in his career (among eligible Gs):
2025: 7/84 (!)
2024: 7/78
2023: 23/85
2022: 21/83
2021: 26/88
2020: 13/92
2019: 28/88
He is somehow getting better with age. https://t.co/NpwgBSG3dV
Besides his play, Risner has been very open about wanting to be in Cincinnati and has built quite a rapport with 2024 first-round pick tackle Amarius Mims, who has been vouching for Dalton Risner time and time again.
This is a no-brainer re-signing for the Bengals, as they've been all about trying to protect Burrow the last few seasons, with signings like Alex Cappa, Ted Karras, La'el Collins, and Orlando Brown Jr., as well as using draft picks (Cordell Volson, Amarius Mims, Dylan Fairchild, etc.), and this move has really worked out in their favor.
It would also be relatively cheap to bring Risner back. He's been good, but he's not a top-of-the-line guard, and he's also 30 years old. Re-sign him to a one or two year deal, and you don't have to worry about addressing the offensive line until maybe the draft, since Orlando Brown Jr. and Ted Karras will be going into the last year of their contracts next season.
Extensions for both DJ Turner II and Dax Hill
After completely botching the Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins extensions and waiting until the last minute to secure their futures in Cincinnati, costing them tens of millions of dollars more than it otherwise would have, its time for the Bengals' front office to finally jump in front of getting young and promising players extended, instead of sitting on their hands and hoping for the best.
And wouldn't you know it? They have the perfect opportunity to prove they can handle these situations intelligently this offseason.
Cincinnati has itself a nice pair of Michigan cornerbacks in their room, which is refreshing because just a couple of months ago, it looked like the defense needed a complete overhaul.
DJ Turner II had the breakout season that everybody was expecting, recording 18 passes defended, two interceptions, and just a 75.6 passer rating allowed in his 3rd NFL season, earning himself a Pro Bowl nod as an alternative.
"We was in the same high school class, went to Michigan the same day...we've been doing it."
— Jeremy Rauch (@FOX19Jeremy) December 28, 2025
Spoke with DJ Turner on Dax Hill as CB1 and CB2 and if this defensive growth can translate to next season. #Bengals @FOX19 pic.twitter.com/xjJK6Gdjxy
4th-year Bengal Daxton Hill's season wasn't as neat as his high school, college, and now professional teammate's, but he still put together the best year of his young career. It got off to a rough start as he had to go through yet another position change, but after Cam Taylor-Britt suffered an injury and Hill was moved back out to the boundary, he looked more comfortable in ever.
Hill's best performance came in the penultimate game of the year, when he completely shut down Cardinals' star tight end Trey McBride until garbage time.
The Bengals need to hammer out deals with Turner and Hill this offseason, if they do consider them a part of the future (which they should). DJ Turner II may be a little pricey considering the year he just had, especially if he ends up getting named to the All-Pro team, but it's better than letting the price drive on up as they've done in recent years.
Dax Hill should be a little cheaper, given his injury history, but either way, hopefully, the front office gets them locked down for the foreseeable future in the next couple of months.
Sign a veteran linebacker in free agency
If there's one room where the Bengals desperately need a veteran presence, it's the linebacker room. Before and then over the course of the season, they lost three stalwarts of the defense in Germaine Pratt, Logan Wilson, and Akeem Davis-Gaither.
It was certainly time to move on from them, but throwing two rookies into the fray (Demetrius Knight Jr. and Barrett Carter) and hoping for the best went about as well as you'd expect. At one point during the season, the rookie duo made up two of the bottom-three graded linebackers in the league according to PFF. Oof.
To be fair, they did improve over the course of the season, but if the front office wants the defense to take the next step to properly compliment this offense by not being historically bad, they cannot go out there next season with Knight and Carter starting again. Or, at the very least, they need to bring in someone who can rotate snaps with them.
Oren Burks has struggled mightily in his limited opportunities on defense. Joe Giles-Harris has been an excellent special teamer, but it's clear the coaching staff doesn't trust him enough to give him a lot of snaps on defense, same with Shaka Heyward. So, they should absolutely try to address what was ultimately their weakest position on defense through free agency. There are a lot of intriguing names in this cycle.
Leo Chenal, Alex Anzalone, Devin Bush -- all affordable upcoming free agents who would be an immediate upgrade for this defense. Hopefully, the front office signs one of them, or another veteran linebacker who can play well and be a mentor for the soon-to-be sophomore duo.
Read More: Bengals rival requests head coaching interview in laughably desperate move
Draft a safety on Day 2
Besides the marquee, blue-chip prospect Caleb Downs out of Ohio State, it feels like the rest of this safety class for the 2026 NFL Draft is being heavily overlooked, when in reality, there is a lot of potential among this group, and the Bengals should certainly take a swing at at least one of them in round 2 or 3.
The Geno Stone signing has been a complete disaster, struggles in coverage, and is a complete liability as a tackler. He'll make a splash play now and then, but it doesn't make up for all the poor play in between them. Sunday vs. Cleveland was likely his last game in stripes, and if that's the case, then they'll have a hole on defense that needs to be filled. The coaching staff has made it clear they don't see starters in Tycen Anderson, PJ Jules, or Daijahn Anthony, so they'll likely look to the draft to fill the spot Stone leaves behind.
Fortunately, this is a good draft to need a safety in. As mentioned above, Caleb Downs is the best of the lot, but the Bengals are probably already out of the range to draft him. However, some good prospects are waiting on day two. A.J. Haulcey out of LSU, USC's Kamari Ramsey, and Dillon Thieneman out of Oregon, just to name a few projected 2nd-round picks.
Personally, Toledo's Emmanuel McNeil-Warren is a favorite of mine that Cincinnati should have the chance to grab in the 3rd round. He had a stellar career with the Rockets (including 8 forced fumbles and 5 interceptions in 3 years as a starter), and was even named to Pro Football Focus' All-American team.
The Bengals need a new face to start alongside Jordan Battle next year, and there are plenty of candidates for that new face in the 2026 Draft.
What do you want to see happen this offseason for the Bengals?