The Cincinnati Bengals are preparing for their first game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in two weeks and have been adding players to their practice squad to get them ready.
One of the additions the Bengals made to the practice squad on Tuesday is 40-year-old quarterback Josh Johnson, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Johnson has spent 10 seasons in the NFL and has played for several teams. He started his career with the Buccaneers in 2009 before moving on to the Cleveland Browns, Cincinnati Bengals, Washington, New York Jets, Baltimore Ravens, San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, Houston Texans, Los Angeles Chargers, Indianapolis Colts, Buffalo Bills, and Raiders.
Johnson Spent This Offseason With the Bengals
The 6-foot-3 quarterback has appeared in 50 games during his NFL career, throwing for 2,669 yards and 14 touchdowns. Johnson’s first stint with the Bengals came in 2013, when he appeared in two games.
The Bengals signed Johnson to the roster this past March, but he was part of the waiver cuts on Sunday. But now Johnson will have a chance to continue his career with the Bengals for maybe another season.
Cincinnati only has two quarterbacks on its 53-man roster: Joe Burrow and Joe Flacco. However, it also signed Sean Clifford to the practice squad.
Given Burrow’s recent injury history over the past few years, there is a chance that Johnson might have to be added to the 53-man roster at some point in the season if the injury bug strikes Burrow one more time.
Burrow Thinks This Year’s Bengals Team Could be Like 2019 LSU
The Bengals are heading into the season with high expectations as they have one of the best rosters in the NFL. However, the only issue is that they have failed to make the playoffs the last three seasons.
A big reason the Bengals have missed the playoffs in recent years has been Burrow’s injuries during the 2023 and 2025 seasons. But this could be the year they return to the playoffs and make a deep run. Burrow believes this team could be similar to his 2019 LSU squad, which went undefeated and won the national championship.
“I don’t know, it just felt inevitable,” Burrow said during training camp, via Sports Illustrated NFL insider Albert Breer. “We finished stronger the year before. I knew how good Justin [Jefferson] was. I didn’t quite know how good Ja’Marr was going to be yet because his superpower is after the catch, and in practice you can’t really see that. He was getting open and making plays. Obviously, that’s what he does, but what makes him one of one is after the catch. I realized that somewhere in the early 2019 season.
“But, yeah, I just knew how things felt around the building. I knew how practices were going. I knew that offense fit my skill set more so than any one I had been in. It just made sense to me. As I said, there was just a feeling around the building that it was inevitable.”
Burrow became a household name in 2019, throwing for 5,671 yards and 60 scores, which led him to win the Heisman Trophy and become the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.
If this year’s Bengals team shows any shade of the 2019 LSU team, then there is a good chance they could come out and win the AFC.
Bengals Add 10-Year Veteran QB to Practice Squad After Final Roster Cuts: Report