Following final roster cuts and waiver wire transactions, we now have a pretty good idea of how the Cincinnati Bengals will look heading into the 2026 season.
Excitement is high around the Bengals. After three consecutive seasons of missing the postseason, the Bengals’ front office spent aggressively in free agency and pulled off a blockbuster trade for three-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence.
Last season, Cincinnati struggled heavily on defense, and while the expectation is that these moves will massively improve their defense, there are still areas where the team could get better before Week 1. As a result, the team has been pushed to sign a 10-time Pro Bowl linebacker.
Cincinnati Bengals Pushed to Sign Bobby Wagner
StripeHype’s Brandon Johnson listed three players the Cincinnati Bengals should target before their regular season opener. Among those players was future Hall-of-Fame linebacker Bobby Wagner.
Johnson wrote: “Cincinnati clearly believes in its young linebackers, and that confidence may prove justified. But there’s a difference between trusting Knight and Carter to play significant roles and entering a championship-or-bust season with almost no margin for error behind them…
Signing Wagner wouldn’t require Cincinnati to abandon its youth movement at linebacker. Knight and Carter could remain central pieces of Golden’s rebuilt defense while Wagner provides an experienced alternative capable of stepping into a significant role if necessary.
He would also provide insurance against injury at a position where Cincinnati can least afford one.
The Bengals going unusually light at linebacker could indicate they’re comfortable supplementing the position with practice-squad elevations and utilizing their considerable depth elsewhere on defense.
Or it could mean the roster isn’t finished yet.
Wagner is long in the tooth at 36 years old. Nevertheless, he’s productive and available without the Bengals needing to surrender draft capital or win another waiver claim.
For a team that’s spent the offseason behaving like its Super Bowl window is right now, this is exactly the type of late-August opportunity it shouldn’t ignore.”
Bobby Wagner’s Potential Fit
The Cincinnati Bengals have been linked to Wagner all offseason, and while the team has shown no signs of being interested in the veteran, that could potentially change with Wagner likely being available on a cheap contract.
The reason the team is constantly mentioned as a potential destination for the veteran is that Cincinnati’s young linebackers struggled in 2025. And despite the team’s belief that they will improve, they are still a question mark on a roster that appears capable of contention.
In May, Sports Illustrated’s Gilberto Manzano named the Bengals the best fit for Wagner, as he wrote: “Cincinnati finally made improvements to its poor defense, but spent most of the offseason working on the defensive line, with the trade for Dexter Lawrence II, and the signings of Boye Mafe and Jonathan Allen.
The back end of the defense still needs plenty of help, but all these holes likely won’t be fixed in one year. However, it would go a long way if Cincinnati added Wagner to patrol the middle of the field to make sure everything goes smoothly for this new-look front. Yes, Wagner was an issue in coverage for the Commanders last year, but he’s still a quality sideline-to-sideline playmaker and his high football IQ would benefit any team.”
Bengals Pushed to Sign $118 Million Pro Bowl Player After Roster Cuts