Bengals' Shemar Stewart injury, scheme shift open preseason door for 3 pass rushers

The Cincinnati Bengals have struggled mightily, outside of anyone named Trey Hendrickson, to get a decent pass rush on opposing quarterbacks. However, with defensive coordinator Al Golden building toward a more 3-4 look last season, the team is taking a slightly new approach to solving that problem.

However, their on-field strategy has not jived with their personnel. Now, with Hendrickson gone and replaced by more of an outside linebacker in Boye Mafe, Al Golden’s shift to a base 3-4 is almost complete. 

The new scheme, along with the injury to Shemar Stewart, creates an opportunity for players who have been on the roster for a while, Antwaun Powell-Ryland, Isaiah Foskey, and Cedric Johnson, to prove their worth at the OLB role that they thrived in while in college.  

Defense’s Howell-ification good news for Antwaun Powell-Ryland

Cashius Howell's arrival in the Queen City was the equivalent of the bat signal going up for Powell-Ryland in particular. But instead of a bat, "ride the wave" flashed in orange-and-black neon lights.

Powell-Ryland was an absolute beast of a pass rusher in college. In his final season, he notched 16 sacks, 19 tackles for loss, 43 tackles, and three forced fumbles. 

Nevertheless, despite the NFL constantly searching for prolific pass rushers, Powell-Ryland lasted until the sixth round of the 2025 draft, when the Philadelphia Eagles selected him. 

Powell-Ryland joined the Bengals’ practice squad after getting released by the Eagles. 

One of the reasons that Powell-Ryland lasted so long in the draft was his short arms. Where have we heard that before?

While Howell’s arm length was the shortest ever for an edge rusher taken in the draft, that still has not stopped him from looking just as awesome in training camp as he did in college. 

Powell-Ryland can ride Howell’s short-arm coat-tails to preseason exploits against different colored jerseys. In that case, even if he is buried on the Bengals’ suddenly stacked defensive line, Powell-Ryland could become a target for another team that is looking to upgrade its pass rush.  

Isaiah Foskey’s familiarity with Golden could give him an edge

Another player who is in a position to take advantage of extra preseason snaps is Isaiah Foskey. 

Foskey is intimately knowledgeable about what Bengals defensive coordinator Al Golden wants from his stand-up defensive ends. 

Foskey played for Golden in his final year at Notre Dame. Following his 11-sack, 14 tackles for loss, and 45-tackle senior campaign, the New Orleans Saints selected Foskey in the second round of the 2023 draft. 

After two seasons without any success with the Saints, Foskey reunited with his former college DC in Cincinnati last year when he signed to the practice squad. 

Foskey’s draft pedigree and familiarity with Golden’s system should give him a step on his camp competition. Furthermore, as with Powell-Ryland, Stewart’s absence makes way for more snaps in the preseason games for Foskey. 

Also, while he has experience as a stand-up edge rusher, he can also play the traditional 4-3 defensive end role that the Bengals should not look for from Howell or Powell-Ryland.  

That versatility will only further help Foskey if Stewart ends up on the PUP list, which would keep him out for the first four weeks of the season. 

That is, of course, if Foskey can take advantage of those extra preseason snaps. 

Cedric Johnson still holds edge

Still, both Foskey and Powell-Ryland have some work to do to catch and surpass Cedric Johnson. 

The Bengals took Johnson in the sixth round of the 2024 draft. In 18 games with Cincinnati, he has recorded three sacks, 27 tackles, and three tackles for loss. However, like most players who are not established starters, Johnson is looking forward to every opportunity that the preseason brings. 

Johnson is third on the Bengals’ preseason depth chart, directly behind Stewart. Therefore, it is safe to assume that the former Mississippi edge rusher is in the best position to benefit from Stewart’s temporary downtime.

Johnson, like Foskey, can move effortlessly between a two-point and three-point stance when rushing opposing quarterbacks. He was primarily a stand-up edge in college, whereas the Bengals have used him more as a traditional hand-in-the-dirt guy. 

Johnson’s challenge is twofold this preseason. He must hold off competition from Foskey and Powell-Ryland while trying to move up the depth chart himself. 

Nobody is a one-for-one Stewart replacement

Neither Powell-Ryland, Johnson, nor Foskey is a one-for-one option behind Shemar Stewart, unlike when they are behind Howell, Mafe, and Myles Murphy. 

The Bengals will throw the kitchen sink at trying to justify the immediately awful decision of drafting Stewart in the first round. 

Stewart’s RAS scores could be their reasoning for giving him some snaps at the OLB role, even though it is painfully obvious that he would be better served as a 3-4 DE or 4-3 defensive tackle for the Bengals. 

However, those snaps not going to Stewart, as part of the aforementioned preseason justification, mean more opportunities for Powell-Ryland, Foskey, and Johnson. 

Hopefully, by the time Stewart recovers, one will have shown enough to convince the coaches that one of them can play backup to Mafe, Howell, and Murphy, putting the 2025 first-round pick in a better position to be more productive.

To do that, Powell-Ryland, Johnson, and Foskey must show up and show out in the preseason games.   

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