Cincinnati Bengals 2026 NFL Season Preview

Offense

By the end of the 2025 campaign, Joe Burrow could no longer hide his frustration. The Pro Bowl QB, who turns 30 in December, wasn’t having much fun near the tail end of another injury-affected, playoff-less season. He was so glum that some speculation emerged that he might have been looking for an exit from the franchise that made him the No. 1 overall pick in 2020. That’s not happening anytime soon, and there’s so much for Burrow to smile about with this Cincinnati offense, which should always be considered one of the NFL’s best when Burrow is healthy. Very little has changed from last year as Burrow seeks to bounce back from a season that was marred by a toe injury that sidelined him for nine games. It marked Burrow’s third season in six years that was heavily impacted by an injury, so the frustration he showed was understandable. It’s a simple equation. When Burrow’s healthy, Cincinnati wins far more than it loses.

Even without Burrow, offense was rarely the issue for Cincinnati last year thanks to the dynamic pass-catching duo of Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins and an underrated ground attack led by Chase Brown. Chase remains Burrow’s go-to option in pretty much every situation, proving to be an equally dangerous threat on short, intermediate and deep passes. His 2025 campaign was a bit of a drop-off from his all-world 2024, but he still recorded 125 catches for 1,412 yards, giving him a whopping 352 receptions over a three-year stretch. Higgins, who is Burrow’s favorite option on third downs and inside the red zone, was seemingly more affected by Burrow’s absence but remains one of the NFL’s best WR2s. Throw in the revival of tight end Mike Gesicki and Brown’s increased role in the passing game — a career-best 69 receptions — and there’s no shortage of firepower at Burrow’s disposal.

Protecting Burrow has been a sensitive subject from the moment he arrived in Cincinnati, but the Bengals have stabilized things a bit on the offensive line. Minimal changes are expected for a group that is anchored in the middle by veteran center Ted Karras and flanked by tackles Orlando Brown Jr. and Amarius Mims. If there’s some vulnerability, it’s at guard, but the Bengals are more than equipped to keep Burrow upright and help move the chains for this high-octane attack.

Defense

It’s hard to pinpoint the low point for the Bengals defense in 2025. That there are numerous options to consider shows how bad it got for the Al Golden-led unit. The encouraging development Cincinnati can carry into 2026, though, is how it finished, as the defense held opponents to 24 points or fewer in five of the final six games. Throw in the addition of one of the NFL’s best defensive tackles, and there’s legitimate reason to believe the Bengals will be much better in Golden’s second season at the helm of the defense.

Lawrence is truly different, and that’s why the Bengals were willing to do the unexpected to acquire him. Never before had the Bengals traded a top-10 pick for a player, but Lawrence was clearly worth it to them. Largely overshadowed by his former team’s offensive struggles, “Sexy Dexy” dominated the trenches for years for the Giants, and now he’ll look to do the same for a Bengals defensive line that has needed a player of his caliber for years. Cincinnati will take all the pass rush it can get from Lawrence, whose 103 total pressures since 2022 are far and away the most among NFL defensive tackles. He’ll play next to fellow newcomer Jonathan Allen, a 10-year veteran who is coming off a solid season in Minnesota.

It’s the kind of talent injection Cincinnati needed in the wake of seeing Pro Bowl pass-rusher Trey Hendrickson depart in free agency to the Baltimore Ravens. The Bengals relied heavily on Hendrickson for sacks and pressure on the opposing quarterback, and it’s not quite clear who will fill his void on the edge. Boye Mafe, signed in free agency after four seasons in Seattle, will get the first crack, but Cincinnati will need more than the two sacks he posted in 2025. The Bengals will also need more from last year’s first-round pick Shemar Stewart, who never really got going after a lengthy contract holdout. Perhaps his former Texas A&M teammate, second-round selection Cashius Howell, can bring it out of him and help elevate the Bengals’ pass rush. Howell will also get an opportunity to make an impact.

The biggest thing Cincinnati’s linebackers and defensive backs can do to bounce back from a woeful 2025 is tackle better. No team in the league had more missed tackles than Cincinnati, and there’s hope that new safeties Bryan Cook, a sure tackler during his four seasons in Kansas City, and Kyle Dugger, who played for Pittsburgh and New England last season, can help fortify the back end of the unit. The middle of the field is probably the biggest concern, as the Bengals will rely heavily on two second-year players, Barrett Carter and Demetrius Knight Jr. Many expected Cincinnati to add to this unit in the draft, but it opted to utilize its resources elsewhere, putting even more pressure on Carter and Knight to elevate their respective performances.

The Bengals added some major length to the cornerbacks room with the third-round selection of 6-foot-4 Tacario Davis, but they’ll rely on two homegrown players, Dax Hill and DJ Turner II, to play the majority of snaps.

Specialists

Cincinnati will trot out the same kicker-punter battery for the third straight season with placekicker Evan McPherson and punter Ryan Rehkow. McPherson bounced back a bit in 2025 after a disappointing 2024, but he showed some inconsistency on extra points, missing three of his 44 attempts to go along with three misses (all from 50-plus yards) on his 25 field-goal attempts. Rehkow can absolutely boom it, as he was one of only five punters to average more than 50 yards in 2025. Charlie Jones, entering his fourth season, is a home-run threat on punts and kickoffs. He’s notched a return touchdown in each of his first three seasons and will look to add another in his contract year.

Final analysis

Every other AFC North team turned over its coaching staff with the exception of the Bengals, who also happen to boast the division’s longest playoff drought. Stability, mixed with some better health luck at quarterback and a just-good-enough defense, could propel Cincinnati back to the postseason and fulfill the high expectations Burrow and Co. carry in 2026.