2025 Bengals Free Agency Spotlight: Chase Young

A former local college standout and No. 2 overall pick is hitting the open market this spring. Might the Bengals be interested as they re-tool their defense?

The NFL is a league that truly proves that time is a flat circle. Believe it or not, there was a contingent of Cincinnati Bengals fans who wanted the team to draft former Ohio State defensive end Chase Young with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Instead, Cincinnati went with the franchise quarterback in Joe Burrow at that spot, and they haven’t looked back. Young has had his own ebbs and flows in his career, and while there have been disappointments in his first five seasons, there have also been flashes of greatness that made him the very next pick after Burrow that year.

Now, there exists a possibility that Young is in the Bengals’ sights for the 2025 offseason, which would be quite ironic should the Bengals land the top two picks from that critical draft (not to mention the dark day that occurred when these two faced off as rookies). But questions linger from all directions about a move like this.

The most obvious—and the lowest-hanging fruit—is in the national narrative of the Bengals’ perceived financially frugal ways. Will they find a way to keep/extend their internal stars and make splashes in outside free agency?

What about Young himself? Is he ever going to find that elite status seen in his time as a Buckeye, or is he destined for a path much like Jadeveon Clowney? Are the mediocre stat numbers a product of being on largely subpar teams?

Chase Young

• Height: 6-foot-5
• Weight: 265
• Age: 25 (Turns 26 in April)
• Years Pro: Entering sixth season
• College: Ohio State
• Quarterback Sacks: 22 (5.5 in 2024)
• Tackles For Loss: 28 (8.0 in 2024)
• Quarterback Hits: 53 (Career-high 21 in 2024)
• 2024 Quarterback pressures: 61 (Top 15% in NFL in pressure rate)

Contract

Young signed a one-year, $13,000,000 deal with the Saints last year. He is set to be a free agent, and Pro Football Focus predicts his contract with his next team to average out at about $16-$18 million per year.

However, with some injury issues and the lack of eye-popping stats in his career, one has to wonder where his market will land this spring. Still, with the NFL always looking for able pass-rushers, teams will be interested in his services.

Background

Coming into what is quickly becoming an epic 2020 draft class, Young was tabbed as a can’t-miss prospect. In his final two years with the Buckeyes, he racked up a staggering 27 sacks (16.5 in his final season), showing that he was a dominant defensive lineman against some stiff NCAA competition.

As a rookie with the Washington Football Team, Young registered 7.5 sacks and was awarded both Defensive Rookie of the Year and Pro Bowl honors. His next two years didn’t go as planned, though, as he played in just 12 games from 2021-2022, notching just 1.5 sacks over that span.

His injuries prompted a trade to the 49ers in 2023, where he matched his rookie sack total of 7.5 sacks combined that season. Without a fifth-year option exercised on his first contract, Young became a free agent in 2024 and landed with the Saints on a one-year, $13,000,000 fully guaranteed deal.

At first glance, he experienced another dip in production, posting 5.5 sacks last season, but he had the second-highest totals in quarterback hits and total tackles in 2024. As previously mentioned, he was also a frequent presence in the backfield in terms of pressures, showing that the sack total doesn’t necessarily correlate with his production—especially as a player who substituted in and out of the New Orleans defense.

Given the last two years’ production totals (albeit with three teams), Young is looking to cash in on a lucrative deal this spring.

Outlook

The most intriguing thing about Young and where he’s at in his career is his age. He’s in his mid-20s, and one could argue that he’s right in the prime of his NFL career.

The data shows that he likely won’t be a double-digit sack guy, but he could be a solid No. 2 rusher for a team that needs it (Hello, Bengals!). Young didn’t do many workouts heading into the draft (he didn’t need to), so his Relative Athletic Score (RAS) profile was incomplete. However, the prevailing opinion is that he’d bring youth, athleticism, and excitement to a defensive unit.

While there are a lot of dots to connect, namely the Bengals’ need for more pass-rushers and the past Ohio connection, there are other factors making this a simultaneously unlikely scenario.

As reported earlier on Monday, the team is likely going to use the franchise tag on Tee Higgins, which would carry a price tag near $26 million. Throw in extensions wanting to get done for both Ja’Marr Chase and Trey Hendrickson, and you can see how a $17 million APY salary for Young can seem like a stretch.

But if the Bengals want to go all-in this offseason, this would be a solid move for a team looking to reload the defense for Al Golden.

This episode was brought to you in part by FOCO, the “Fans Only Company.” One of their upcoming releases is a very special one, not only because of the players featured but because it is a limited release of only 75 in production. Check out the Ja’Marr Chase/Carl Pickens Rookie of the Year bobblehead for purchase here.

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