Sam Hubbard: Everything you need to know

Hubbard (knee) announced Wednesday via social media that he has retired from the NFL. In a surprising move, Hubbard will bring an end to his career after spending all seven of his professional seasons in Cincinnati. The 29-year-old defensive end sustained a PCL injury and missed Cincinnati's final three games of the 2024 season, but he was relatively unproductive while on the field. In 14 games, Hubbard posted 41 total tackles, the lowest mark since his rookie year in 2018. The Ohio State product ends his career having accumulated 38.5 sacks and 398 total tackles over 104 games during the regular season.

Schuldt was recalled from AHL San Jose on Monday. The Sharks put Henry Thrun (upper body) on injured reserve in a corresponding move. Schuldt has four goals and 17 points in 53 AHL outings this season. He will be an option for Monday's game against Toronto, though he will probably be a healthy scratch.

Hubbard (knee) finished the 2024 season with 41 tackles (25 solo), including 2.0 sacks, two pass breakups, including one interception, one forced fumble and one safety across 14 games with Cincinnati. Hubbard's 2.0 sacks, three tackles for loss and nine QB hits were all career lows for the 29-year-old. He missed the final three games of the season with a PCL injury in his knee. Hubbard is signed through 2025 but is slated for a raise to $9 million next season, a number that may prove to be too high considering the Bengals will be looking to pay Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and possibly Trey Hendrickson. That coupled with Hubbard's dip in production could make him a candidate for release.