Cincinnati

Bengals

Brown had an uneven fantasy season as he was disastrous pre-Joe Flacco and the Bengals simply couldn’t get the ground game going, but came on strong in the second half of the season and wound up with a 69/437/5 receiving line. Entering his age-26 season and the final year of his rookie contract, an extension would seem to make sense given the Bengals don’t exactly have anyone waiting in the wings. 2025 sixth-rounder Tahj Brooks is the closest thing Cincinnati has to a prospect at the position, and he only managed 47 offensive snaps in his rookie season.

Pitcher had an interview for the Browns head-coaching position and was also allowed to interview for a lateral move with the Buccaneers, a place where he’d actually get to call plays. To say the Bengals winding back up with Callahan after his stint as Titans head coach would be predictable is an insult to the word predictable. It would practically be written in the stars. Well, assuming Pitcher gets a new gig, anyway. Callahan has also interviewed for the Chargers and Buccaneers offensive coordinator jobs this cycle.

It’s a lateral move, however, Pitcher would be leaving for a job where he’d actually get to call plays. Head coach Zac Taylor actually gave Pitcher the chance to interview even though he could have blocked it. It’s eye-catching, if nothing else. Pitcher joins a crowded OC interview pool for the Bucs that includes Mike McDaniel, Brian Callahan, Zac Robinson, Mike Kafka, and Todd Monken.

Hudson, 31, was playing on an expiring deal this season but is now locked in for 2026. The veteran tight end played on 148 offensive snaps this season, per PFF, and has never been used as anything more than a backup since entering the league in 2019. He caught 19 passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns this season.

Pitcher, 39, has garnered some head coaching interest in previous hiring cycles but has never been considered a leading candidate for any job. He would be a long shot to land the Browns head coaching job, though the team could fall back on Pitcher if other, more experienced candidates turn down one of the most thankless jobs in football. Pitcher is known for his work with quarterbacks — a key qualification for anyone who gets the head coaching gig in Cleveland. Pitcher once worked for the Colts scouting department alongside Browns general manager Andrew Berry.

In other words, embattled DC Al Golden has survived. This seemed impossible in November, when the Bengals were putting up numbers that generated WOAT discussion in the field of defensive performance. Things did turn around a bit towards the end of the season. We can’t say we’re surprised that the Bengals retained Golden, because they are reluctant to make major changes to a fault, but it is definitely a bold move by Taylor to attach his coaching future to what happened to this defense in 2025.

Taylor-Britt, who in late November was placed on injured reserve with a foot injury, pleaded guilty to reckless driving and an unclassified no-license charge stemming from an incident in September, according to media reports. His sentence is expected to start immediately. Taylor-Britt, 26, selected by the Bengals in the second round of the 2022 NFL draft, has seven interceptions over 47 games in the NFL. It’s unclear if the team or the league will take action against him for the 2026 season.

He was an exclusive rights free agent. Tinsley pushed former third-rounder Jermaine Burton out of Joe Burrow’s circle of trust in the preseason and managed an 8/116/2 seasonal receiving line, with 15 of those targets coming against the Ravens and Patriots as Tee Higgins was out. Tinsley isn’t exactly a fantasy football sleeper, but Burrow’s rapport with him does make him interesting as a contingency plan. The Bengals also signed these 18 other players to ERFA one-year deals or futures contracts: LB Liam Anderson, C Jacob Bayer, HB Gary Brightwell, QB Sean Clifford, OT Andrew Coker, DT Howard Cross, OT Javon Foster, WR Xavier Johnson, CB Jalen Kimber, CB Bralyn Lux, WR Jordan Moore, LB Antwaun Powell-Ryland, S Russ Yeast, DE Isaiah Foskey, LB Joe Giles-Harris, LB Shaka Heyward, TE Cam Grandy, and S PJ Jules.

Flacco finished out the season as Cincinnati’s backup quarterback after Joe Burrow returned from injury in Week 13. The soon-to-be 41-year-old told reporters he’s open to staying on as Burrow’s backup, but also open to fielding calls from a team that needed a quarterback next season. It sounds like Flacco has yet another One Last Job season loading for 2026.

Following an emphatic report from NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport over the weekend that Taylor was going nowhere, the Bengals announced that they’re sticking with the 42-year-old coach Monday morning. Taylor, who took the franchise to its third Super Bowl appearance in 2021 and first since 1988, has also overseen the team nosedive in the last three seasons. Cincinnati hasn’t made the playoffs in three years, with significant injuries to quarterback Joe Burrow impacting two of those seasons. The Bengals defense allowed 492 points this year, the most in franchise history, after moving on from defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo last offseason. Taylor’s contract reportedly runs through the 2027 season, giving him job security that it is difficult to say he’s earned.