Cincinnati Bengals LB Germaine Pratt to be released
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Cincinnati Bengals LB Germaine Pratt to be released
It’s tough to see how the Cincinnati Bengals‘ defense is improving from last year, when they were really bad. According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, the team is releasing veteran linebacker Germaine Pratt.
“The #Bengals are releasing veteran LB Germaine Pratt today, per sources,” Pelissero tweets on X. “Pratt ranked in the top 10 in the NFL last season in tackles and was a team captain. Now, he hits the open market.”
On the surface, this move makes little sense. The 29-year old Pratt had 143 tackles in 2024 to go with two interceptions and two forced fumbles. He requested a trade earlier this offseason back in February, but the Bengals did the smart thing and decided to hold on to him and then get nothing in return. Because…the Bengals.
“Pratt was set to enter the final season of his three-year contract in 2025,” writes Carter Bahns of CBS Sports. “He inked the deal, worth more than $20 million, in 2023. In releasing Pratt, the Bengals will incur $2.3 million in dead money against the salary cap. He was set to earn a $5.25 million salary for the 2025 season.”
These are hardly bank-breaking contract numbers.
For the most part, Pratt was healthy and productive
Pratt was a third-round draft pick of the Bengals back in 2019 and has spent his entire career with the team. Considering that he’s a thumper on the inside of the defense, he’s been incredibly durable during that time. Beginning in his second year in 2020, he’s started 15, 15, 15, 17 and 17 games leading into to 2024. His tackle numbers have increased every single year of his career, topping the century mark in each of the last two seasons.
For his career, Pratt has recorded 616 tackles, seven interceptions and seven forced fumbles. That’s not a Ray Lewis-type of impact, but he’s still a very good player on a defense that can’t afford to lose any good players.
Pratt obviously wanted a new contract, hence his request for a trade. Bengals’ ownership tends to hang up the phone when they hear a player would like to be paid fairly. So, this divorce was probably a long time coming.
The Bengals’ defense just got worse
As previously stated, Pratt is hardly Willie Lanier. But, considering the putrid state of the defense, couldn’t the Bengals have found a way to make it work for another year or so? In 2024, Paycor Stadium was the home of the NFL’s 25th-ranked defense.
Forget Pratt’s release for a moment. The Bengals currently have a defensive end under contract named Trey Hendrickson, you may have heard of him. Hendrickson has been sitting out in the hopes of getting a new contract or being traded to a team that will pay him market value. At this point, he says he’s willing to miss games as he waits for a new deal. Oh, and Hendrickson is coming off of back-to-back 17.5 sacks seasons, the latter of which led the NFL and earned him first-team All Pro honors.
But, fear not, Bengals fans! The Bengals used their first two draft picks in 2025 on the defensive side of the ball. Texas A&M edge rusher Shemar Stewart is expected to come in and either pair with Hendrickson or replace him should he depart. Demetrius Knight is a play-making linebacker out of the University of South Carolina who Cincy took in the second round.
And…both have yet to sign their rookie deals.
So, how exactly is this defense getting better? Is this on general manager Duke Tobin? Is it on ownership again? It’s almost like this organization is intentionally trying to ruin the prime of Joe Burrow’s career.
Right now, it’s tough to see how the Bengals’ moves on defense are improving this team. They didn’t make the playoffs last season with a 9-8 record and fans are supposed to think they have a chance to compete with the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs for the AFC crown? Forget making the Super Bowl, at this rate they might be staring down the barrel of another season without a playoff appearance.