2-time Super Bowl champion signs with Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals have signed a two-time Super Bowl champion defensive player just days before the start of the 2025 season.

Veteran defensive tackle Mike Pennel agreed to a deal with the Bengals on Monday, according to Jordan Schultz. Pennel will begin on the practice squad, but the plan is for him to be elevated to the 53-man roster early in the season.

Pennel, 34, spent the last two seasons with the Chiefs, which was his second stint in Kansas City. He won a Super Bowl each time he was with the team, including when he had 6 tackles in Kansas City’s 25-22 win over the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII.

Pennel played in all 17 games last season and had 25 total tackles and a career-high 3 sacks.

In addition to the Chiefs, Pennel has played for the Chicago Bears, Atlanta Falcons, New York Jets and Green Bay Packers. He has 231 total tackles in 138 career regular-season games. Pennel has 24 total tackles in 15 postseason games.

There is some familiarity for Pennel in Cincinnati, as new Bengals defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery held the same position with the Green Bay Packers when Pennel played there at the start of his career. That may have been a factor in the Bengals’ decision to sign the veteran.