One Cincinnati Bengals rookie who could win a starting job out of camp
With teams on their month-long break from mid-June to mid-July in between minicamp and training camp, we’ve reached the deadest point of the NFL offseason.
But fortunately for football fans, there’s just three weeks left before training camp kicks off, followed by the preseason and regular season, which starts the week of Sept. 7.
Until then, we’ve done training camp previews and analyzed the top position battle to watch for all 32 teams. Next up in our offseason series is looking at one rookie from every team who could win a starting job in training camp this season, and today we’re looking at the Cincinnati Bengals.
Cincinnati’s 2026 Draft Class
- Cashius Howell, DE, Round 2
- Tacario Davis, CB, Round 3
- Connor Lew, C, Round 4
- Colbie Young, WR, Round 4
- Brian Parker II, C, Round 6
- Jack Endries, TE, Round 7
- Landon Robinson, DT, Round 7
Defense has been the one area of trouble the Cincinnati Bengals haven’t been able to solve during Joe Burrow’s time with the team.
The Bengals tried to remedy that the best it could this offseason, trading the 10th overall pick to the New York Giants for Pro Bowl defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence, and they spent their top two draft picks on the defensive side of the ball.
After letting Pro Bowl edge-rusher Trey Hendrickson and Joseph Ossai hit free agency, the Bengals needed replacements along the defensive line.
Enter Cashius Howell.
The 23-year-old rookie was one of the more disruptive players in college football over the last few years. He totaled 41 pressures, 27 hurries, 14 tackles for loss, and 11.5 sacks last year, and he finished his college career with 35.5 tackles for loss and 27 sacks.
Boye Mafe and Shemar Stewart are presumably Cincinnati’s starting edge-rushers, but Howell is talented enough to unseat either of them. He’s got speed off the edge, a fantastic inside spin move, great burst and change of direction, and most importantly — he creates pressure off the edge.
It wouldn’t be surprising if Howell worked his way into the Bengals’ starting pass-rush rotation by Week 1.
