Bengals Football
Bengals defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence runs a drill during practice on May 26.Lawrence faced the fifth-highest double-team rate among defensive tackles last season at 70.35%. AP Carolyn Kaster / AP
The Cincinnati Bengals didn’t do enough to address the lack of a pass rush last offseason, but they turned some heads in how they went about fixing their defensive line issues this year.
On paper, they’re much improved -- even after the departure of Trey Hendrickson and the possibility of four new starters.
Cincinnati signed free agent defensive end Boye Mafe after he helped the Seahawks win a Super Bowl last season, then the organization added veteran defensive tackle Jonathan Allen, and it seemed that would be it. However, the biggest move came later when the Bengals traded the No. 10 overall draft pick for Dexter Lawrence.
That move is not only expected to beef up the interior pass rush, but also gives the defense a needed vocal leader. The hope is a more productive defensive line, including the hope Myles Murphy continues his ascent, will cause a ripple effect on the rest of the defense to help the Bengals climb out of the basement as one of the league’s worst teams on that side of the ball.
Let’s take a look at the past performances of the Bengals’ defensive linemen, and how they are expected to stack up in 2026 with help from some analysis and data from Pro Football Focus.
This is the fifth in a series of pieces breaking down each position group for the Bengals. Next up: Linebackers.
DEFENSIVE LINEMEN ON THE ROSTER
Projected starters: DE Myles Murphy, DT Jonathan Allen, NT Dexter Lawrence, DE Boye Mafe
Reserves: B.J. Hill, Cashius Howell, Kris Jenkins, Cedric Johnson, Landon Robinson, T.J. Slaton, Shemar Stewart
Others in the mix: McKinnley Jackson, Isaiah Foskey, Jordan Jefferson, Howard Cross III, Antwaun Powell-Ryland
MURPHY BY THE NUMBERS
2025 stats: 52 tackles, 6 tackles for loss, 10 quarterback hits, 5.5 sacks, 41 pressures, 1 fumble recovery, 3 passes defended in 17 games with 10 starts
PFF grades for 2025: Murphy ranked 67th of 115 edge players with a defense grade of 64.2, and he was 63rd in pass rush grade (63.5) and 49th in run defense grade (64.8).
PFF ranking for 2026: Not yet available.
ALLEN BY THE NUMBERS
*Stats with Minnesota Vikings
2025 stats: 68 tackles, 7 tackles for loss, 11 quarterback hits, 3.5 sacks, 34 pressures in 17 games, all starts
PFF grades for 2025: Allen ranked 86th of 134 defensive tackles with a defense grade of 53.2, but he was 51st in pass rush grade (64.9). He ranked 102nd in run defense (45.4)
PFF ranking for 2026: Not yet available.
LAWRENCE BY THE NUMBERS
*Stats with New York Giants
2025 stats: 31 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 8 quarterback hits, 0.5 sacks, 34 pressures, 4 passes defended, 1 interception in 17 starts
PFF grades for 2025: Lawrence ranked ninth of 134 edge players with a defense grade of 75.6, and he was seventh in pass rush grade (84.5) and 56th in run defense grade (57.0).
PFF ranking for 2026: Not yet available.
MAFE BY THE NUMBERS
*Stats with Seattle Seahawks
2025 stats: 31 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 4 quarterback hits, 2.0 sacks, 40 pressures in 17 games with four starts
PFF grades for 2025: Ranked 46th of 115 defensive tackles with a defense grade of 69.2, and he was 45th in pass rush grade (68.7) and 48th in run defense grade (65.1).
PFF ranking for 2026: Not yet available.
FURTHER ANALYSIS
The Bengals finished the 2025 season with the third-worst defensive line in the NFL, according to PFF, which gave theirs an overall grade of 57.0.
That seems about right. Hendrickson missed 10 games and still was by far their highest-graded player.
Joseph Ossai benefited the most, getting Hendrickson’s snaps on the right edge, and he used the opportunity to earn a new big contract with the New York Jets. Murphy also stepped up after going without a sack in 2025 but the total production between those two still fell well below what the Bengals needed.
The hope is that Mafe can be the next Hendrickson, someone with something to prove in his second contract. After totaling 15.0 sacks between 2023 and 2024, Mafe was limited in 2025 in a rotation on an elite Seahawks defensive line. If he gets those numbers back up, Cincinnati should be just fine.
Mafe and the other edge rushers should benefit from an interior push from Lawrence and Allen – upgrades over B.J. Hill and TJ Slaton.
Although Lawrence didn’t have a full sack last year, he was doubled-teamed 71.3 percent of his snaps and still ranked among the best pass rushers with pressure and forcing quarterbacks into hurried throws. He had 21.0 sacks combined between his Pro Bowl seasons in 2022, 2023 and 2024, including 9.0 sacks two years ago, and ESPN's recent survey of NFL executives, coaches and scouts still resulted in Lawrence ranking as the seventh-best defensive tackle in the league.
Allen still can play all three downs, and if nothing else, he can split time with B.J. Hill, who could be much more productive with better rotation.
The Bengals will have true depth in 2026, and that hasn’t been the case in a while.