The Cincinnati Bengals' 53-man roster is up there with some of the elite in the league right now. They could make it even better, but now that the waiver wire deadline has lapsed, the 16-man practice squad has been revealed.
Roster cuts were absolutely brutal. Past Day 2 draft picks like McKinnley Jackson and Isaiah Foskey were waived due to how loaded Cincinnati's defensive line is. Nickelback Bralyn Lux was a promising undrafted free agent last year who just missed out on the active roster yet again.
And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Most of the Bengals' taxi squad guys are familiar faces. Known commodities who know the system and the culture. Many of them were worthy of roster spots elsewhere. Let's dive into who these cats are and break down some of the biggest notables.
Big ups to NBC 5 Cincinnati's Charlie Clifford as the exclusive source for all these practice squad signees unless otherwise indicated.
Tracking the 2026 Cincinnati Bengals practice squad roster
- LB Liam Anderson
- RB Kentrel Bullock
- QB Sean Clifford
- OT Myles Hinton*
- CB Bralyn Lux
- RB Kendall Milton
- S Russ Yeast
Bralyn Lux actually got a shout out in The Athletic today from Daniel Popper as the No. 1 player who could make an impact on a new team. When you're atop a waiver wire big board, you're doing something right. What a relief to get him back!
The big news from the waiver wire action was the fact that Cincinnati claimed ex-Eagles sixth-round pick Myles Hinton, per Netflix's Tom Pelissero. Hinton is a second-year pro out of Michigan, a program the Bengals have had considerable success in finding quality talent, Kris Jenkins Jr. notwithstanding. DJ Turner and Dax Hill spring to mind!
Don't know much about Hinton. His PFF blocking grades improved across the board from this preseason to last. Dude is listed at 342 pounds. Fits right into the Bengals' jumbo tackle room with Orlando Brown Jr. and Amarius Mims, who both tip the scales at a ho-hum, necessarily-capitalized abbreviation 350 LBS.
Cincinnati's necessarily air-quoted swing tackle "competition" was something of a joke in training camp. Jalen Rivers was panic-moved out there once he flopped so miserably at guard. He's the worst player on the initial 53-man roster. Default swing tackle Javon Foster ain't much better. One of them could be cut loose, courtesy of Hinton's arrival.
Russ Yeast sticking around ain't a surprise. Could envision him getting the call up to the active roster on occasion to help with special teams. Or maybe not now that the position isn't totally incompetent! How refreshing! Thank you Bryan Cook and Kyle Dugger!
Cool to see Sean Clifford get a shot to keep developing in Cincy. He played well enough in the preseason at quarterback (95.7 passer rating), although I'm a little miffed as to why Josh Johnson wasn't considered for the 53-man crew.
Four teams around the league initially kept four QBs on the active roster. Don't understand how Johnson wouldn't be a major asset to the Joe Burrow-Joe Flacco QB room.
Anyway, we'll hope Johnson circles back. I'm shocked that Kendall Milton is back as a practice squad running back. I'm thrilled that Kentrel Bullock is, but I was really hoping the rookie UDFA tandem of Bullock and Jamal Haynes would return. I doubt the Bengals keep three backs on the p-squad.
Check here for more analysis on the taxi squad. WHO DEY.
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