The Cincinnati Bengals have spent money to try to fix one of the worst defensive lines in the league, which was made even worse after Trey Hendrickson and Joseph Ossai left in free agency. Not only did they add Super Bowl champion Boye Mafe on a three-year deal, but the release of former Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Jonathan Allen led the Bengals to pounce quickly.
Allen, who spent most of his career with the Washington franchise that currently does business as the Washington Commanders, signed a two-year contract worth $26 million. The deal can escalate to $28 million if certain incentives are hit. The Bengals may be one of the few teams in the league willing to give him that contract.
That's a big chunk of change for someone who graded out as the 102nd-best run defender in the NFL among defensive tackles last season and was cut loose by a team that was underwater financially. Allen is more of a reclamation project than a locked-in difference-maker.
Jonathan Allen contract details show Bengals may have overpaid
At this point in his career, Allen is exactly what many of the pre-draft doubters thought he would be out of Alabama. He's not nig enough to eat up space as a run-stuffer, and his pass rush skills have waned to the point where he can't dominate in that arena either.
Allen represents an upgrade over some of the also-rans on this lackluster Cincinnati defensive line, but on a team that has some big contracts eating up most of their cap space. Unless he gets back to his Pro Bowl days as a pass rusher, this contract may not age well.
Allen should be a nice veteran addition for players like struggling 2025 first-rounder Shemar Stewart and whoever they select in the 2026 NFL Draft. That veteran moxie likely played a huge part in making sure that he was able to strong-arm Cincinnati into this multi-year contract.
Just because Allen is an upgrade doesn't mean that his contract is not above market value for an aging defensive tackle who might be coming off the worst individual season of his career. The Bengals are betting big on their coaching staff being able to patch him up.
Allen's leadership might justify the contract, as Cincinnati will likely have one of the youngest defenses in the league, but he needs to have a much better season than he had during his final year in Minnesota if he wants to become a fan favorite among Bengals fans.