The Cincinnati Bengals revealed the first 53-man roster of the season.
The team publicly announced its cuts and other roster designations moments after the Aug. 30 6 p.m. deadline.
Bengals head coach Zac Taylor on Aug. 28 said he expected the weekend to be a tense time of trimming down the roster because of the team's apparent depth. Here's what the team landed on for its initial 53-man roster for the 2026 season.
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Cincinnati Bengals 2026 roster
The Bengals terminated four contracts and waived 30 players as part of reached their initial 53-man roster. The team on Aug. 31 expects to announce its 16-player practice squad.
Two players were placed on injured reserve.
Cincinnati should look similar in 2026 on the offensive side in terms of starters, although there
was noteworthy turnover in some of the depth spots.
Defensively, Dexter Lawrence headlined some noticeable roster churn resulting from the team's work in offseason free agency and in the NFL Draft.
All told, Cincinnati rostered two quarterbacks, six wide receivers, three running backs, five tight ends, nine offensive linemen, 11 defensive lineman, 10 defensive backs, four linebackers and three specialists.
Quarterback
- Starter: Joe Burrow
- Backup: Joe Flacco
Wide receiver
- Tee Higgins
- Ja'Marr Chase
- Andrei Iosivas
- KaShawn Williams
- Dohnte Meyers
- Colbie Young
Running backs
- Starter: Chase Brown
- Backups: Semaje Perine, Tahj Brooks
Tight ends
- Starter: Mike Gesicki
- Backups: Drew Sample, Tanner Hudson, Erick All Jr., Jack Endries
Offensive Line
- Starters: Orlando Brown Jr. Amarius Mims, Ted Karras, Dalton Risner, Dylan Fairchild
- Backups: Jalen Rivers, Javon Foster, Jacob Bayer, Connor Lew
Defensive line
- Jonathan Allen
- BJ Hill
- Dexter Lawrence
- TJ Slaton Jr.
- Boye Mafe
- Myles Murphy
- Kris Jenkins Jr.
- Cedric Johnson
- Shemar Stewart
- Cashius Howell
- Landon Robinson
Linebackers
- Starters: Demetrius Knight, Barrett Carter
- Backups: Oren Burks, Swayze Bozeman
Defensive backs
- DJ Turner II
- Dax Hill
- Kyle Dugger
- Jalen Davis
- Jordan Battle
- DJ Ivey
- Josh Newton
- PJ Jules
- Tacario Davis
- Bryan Cook
Specialists
- K Evan McPherson
- P Ryan Rehkow
- LS William Wagner
Injured reserve
- Ja'Sir Taylor
- Brian Parker II
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Bengals 53-man roster: Here's who made the team
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