The Cincinnati Bengals head to Philadelphia tonight for their preseason finale, and the important part isn’t the scoreboard. The starters are sitting, which leaves the night to the young players and the roster-bubble guys trying to squeeze one more good performance onto the tape before Sunday’s 6 PM ET cutdown deadline.
That’s the real tension of this game. By the time the league trims rosters to 53 men, plenty of players on both sidelines will be staring at uncertain futures.
Some will land on practice squads. Some will get calls from other teams.
Some will be left trying to stay ready and hope another opportunity shows up. For a lot of them, this is the last chance to play meaningful NFL snaps until next offseason, if they get another shot at all.
That’s why performances from players like wide receiver Dohntae Meyers and defensive tackle Landon Robinson matter so much right now. A strong showing can push a player onto a roster.
But this time of year also brings the other side of the equation, and someone like Charlie Jones or Mitchell Tinsley could end up on a different roster or back on a practice squad. Tinsley was a preseason darling last year and even flashed during the regular season, but that doesn’t guarantee anything now.
It all comes down to numbers. Teams can only carry so many receivers, tight ends, and defensive tackles, and the players know exactly how brutal that reality is. Outside of the Joe Burrows and Ja’Marr Chases of the league, most players are only one decision away from seeing their dream put on pause or end altogether.
On the Bengals side, one young lineman has clearly made an impression. Fourth-round pick Connor Lew, who spent part of camp recovering from a knee injury, started at center against the Bears, and head coach Taylor said Lew has made up for the time he lost while rehabbing. That’s another strong sign of confidence in him, and the sense is he’d be the first option if something happened at guard.
There was also a notable quote from Marvin Lewis, who said, “Mike Brown doesn’t give a (expletive) about money” and added, “His words trigger action,” Lewis said. “No question in my mind, they trigger action, because (Brown) loves quarterbacks and he wants to win in the worst way.”
Lewis’ comments are worth hearing in full, especially because he hasn’t really spoken in depth about his time with the Bengals. His point about Burrow’s words triggering action stood out.
Another Bengals offseason addition is also looking ahead. Cook said, “I’m buzzing with a lot of excitement right now,” when discussing the chance to take the field for the first time as a member of his hometown team this season. Bengals fans have reason to feel the same way, especially if Cook can help provide a better answer on the back end of the defense than Geno Stone did.
Elsewhere around the league, the Seahawks and defensive tackle Leonard Williams agreed to a three-year, $90 million extension. It’s another data point for a market that isn’t moving as fast at defensive tackle as some other spots, though Dexter Lawrence is going to need paid down the line and the question is whether the team will be willing to go that high for a player entering his 30s.
And before the fantasy drafts get rolling, one quick piece of advice: start an auction league. It takes more skill and it’s a lot more fun than a standard draft, even if there’s nothing wrong with the regular format.
One final note from the NFL news side: ignoring the obvious terrible human being implications and sticking strictly to the football angle, Jacobs is probably hoping whatever video doesn’t come out. The problem is that we’ve seen, unfortunately, that videos sometimes have to surface before there’s any real public outcry about that kind of situation.
In Other News...
Zac Taylor Enters A Bengals Season With Pressure Building Fast
The early stretch of this season figures to matter a lot in Cincinnati, where Zac Taylor enters with the kind of pressure that comes with a coach whose team is expected to contend but has not left much margin for error. Around the league, coaches like Todd Bowles, Nick Sirianni and Aaron Glenn are also being watched closely, but Taylors situation stands out because the Bengals are once again trying to prove they can stay competitive in a tough division while dealing with the usual turbulence that comes with roster and staff turnover.
For Taylor, the heat is less about one bad Sunday than the broader expectation that a team built around high-end talent should look ready from the start. If Cincinnati stumbles early, the conversation around the head coach could get loud in a hurry, especially with the NFLs impatience toward teams that fail to translate talent into wins. The Bengals do not need a perfect opening month, but they do need enough traction to keep the season from turning into an uncomfortable referendum on the coach. [Read more 🡒]
Bengals Suddenly Have A Roster Edge That Could Matter Fast
With the final preseason game of 2026 on deck, the Bengals are staring at the same late-summer roster crunch every team faces, only this time theyve got a little more leverage than usual. Cincinnati must get down to 53 players by the Aug. 30 deadline, and the bigger question for the front office is whether it can turn its waiver position into help where it needs it most, with backup offensive tackle still unsettled.
The Bengals sit tenth on the waiver wire because of their 2025 draft order, a spot that could matter quickly if the market for line depth gets busy. The Ravens and Texans are also expected to be in the hunt for offensive line reinforcements after recent injuries, which means Cincinnati may have to move fast if it wants to land a usable reserve, whether that comes through a waiver claim or a trade. [Read more 🡒]
Bengals Still Face One Front Office Issue In The Burrow Window
Marvin Lewis recently revisited one of the Bengals old structural hurdles, pointing back to a scouting department that has long operated smaller than many of its peers. During his time in Cincinnati, he pushed to add more resources on the personnel side, knowing the work of evaluating players has to stretch across both college prospects and pro talent if a front office wants to keep up year-round.
Those concerns still feel relevant in the Joe Burrow era, even as the Bengals have added to their scouting staff in a broader wave of organizational changes. The question now is less whether the team recognizes the issue than how far it can go in building out that department while still managing the constant tug between college and pro evaluations. [Read more 🡒]