After much speculation, the Cincinnati Bengals have managed to keep Germaine Pratt, signing him to a three-year deal worth $21 million. He'll get $10.35 million in 2023 and then over $15 million in the final two years combined, which likely means the team is accounting for a Joe Burrow extension to kick in during that third year.
The Bengals had been quiet during the legal tampering part of free agency but re-signing Pratt was a move they needed to make and they made it their first priority. Keeping Pratt on defense means the linebacker group won't have to look for upgrades this offseason.
This honestly makes it not too difficult to keep Logan Wilson in town too. The market appears to be low so the team would be wise to extend Wilson while this is the case.
The #Bengals are re-signing LB Germaine Pratt to a three-year, $21 million deal, per source. He gets $10.35M in Year 1 and $15.15M over two years. He’s started 54 career games and now stays in Cincinnati.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 13, 2023
Germaine Pratt needed to be a priority and the Bengals made him one
Fans weren't optimistic that Pratt would be back in Cincinnati and his outburst at the end of the AFC title game didn't help. I started to feel a little better about him returning once we saw some of the projected contracts but it felt like with Pratt's tweets and previous comments that he might want more money and playing time elsewhere.
The Bengals were smart to keep him in Cincinnati though. This is a move that will keep the defense strong and hopefully win the team a Super Bowl.