It is no secret that the Cincinnati Bengals need to get better at rushing the passer.
Trey Hendrickson is as good as gone. Myles Murphy took some big steps this season, but he can’t do it on his own.
I would love to bring Joseph Ossai back. He is only 26 years old and has five sacks in each of the last two seasons. He also has inside/out versatility as a rusher.
Ossai’s return, however, seems a bit unlikely. And even if he did not back, they could still use more help.
Here are some guys who could be a fit.
Odafe Oweh
27-year-old Odafe Oweh was a 2021 1st Round Pick for the Baltimore Ravens. After spending 4 years in Baltimore, he was traded to the Los Angeles Chargers during the 2025 season. He has had at least eight sacks and 18 quarterback hits in each of the last two seasons. He added 47 pressures to his resume this season as well.
The Penn State Alum has excellent length and is solid in run defense.
He is exactly the type of player the Bengals need to add across from Myles Murphy.
Arnold Ebiketie
Of course, all Bengals fans are looking for the next Trey Hendrickson, and Arnold Ebiketie might just be it.
Ebiketie blew away the 2022 NFL Combine before being selected by the Atlanta Falcons early in the 2nd Round.
Like Hendrickson before him, he has all the tools, but just hasn’t gotten enough reps to really pop. This year, he had 2 sacks and 25 pressures, but that was in a mere 384 snaps. In each of the previous two seasons, he had 6 sacks and 12 quarterback hits.
Ebiketie is only 26 and poised for a breakout in the right situation. He is a guy I’d be extremely excited to see in stripes, and I think defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery could get a lot out of him.
Jaelan Phillips
Phillips was sent from Miami to Philadelphia in a midseason move.
He finished the year with 5 sacks, which is the lowest number he has posted when healthy in his career.
Phillips played well against both the run and the pass for two different clubs while playing a high volume of snaps. Despite a torn ACL in 2024, Phillips’s body held up well to taking over 800 snaps this season.
Phillips was a 1st Round pick in 2021 and made an immediate impact for the Dolphins and is 26 years old.
K’Lavon Chaisson
We do love LSU Tigers, don’t we?
K’Lavon Chaisson was selected 20th overall by the Jaguars in 2020, but he never really caught on in Jacksonville. After 4 sacks over 4 years, he moved on to the Las Vegas Raiders, where he doubled his career total in a single season. This past season, he was with the New England Patriots, where he had 7.5 sacks, 18 quarterback hits, and 53 pressures.
Although he will be heading into his seventh season in 2026, Chaisson is only 26 years old.
He seems to be just starting to take off, meaning his best ball is still ahead of him.
Boye Mafe
Everybody seems to love Mike Macdonald, but I’m not so sure that’s how Boye Mafe feels.
When Macdonald arrived in Seattle, the 27-year-old Mafe was a rising star for the Seahawks who had 15 sacks over the previous two seasons.
This season, he saw his playing time cut, and his production followed suit.
Now he heads into free agency (potentially) coming off a 2 sacks season and likely looking to restart his career.
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