Dalton Risner Highlights Big Reasons He Signed New Deal With Cincinnati Bengals

Cincinnati got it's biggest offensive free agent signed before the action starts.

Oct 12, 2025; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; Cincinnati Bengals guard Dalton Risner (66) during warmups prior to the game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

CINCINNATI — The Bengals signed Dalton Risner to a contract extension this week, cementing the offensive starting group basically across the board for next season.

Risner was the only major piece of the offense not under contract this fall. Now, the continuity train gets another passenger after his best NFL season just played out with the Bengals.

"A big reason why I wanted to come back to Cincinnati is because of Zac Taylor," Risner said about the deal. "I'm probably going to say a lot today that has nothing to do with the questions that you asked, but I just feel like I'm full of gratitude coming back and being with (offensive line coach) Scott Peters."

Risner just wrapped up a one-year $1.19 million contract he signed with Cincinnati right before the season kicked off. He struggled to start, but clearly showed himself to be their best right guard option over the past few months. The fast learner quickly got dialed into the offense after joining the team in late August.

"A critical part of our team, critical part of our offensive line, a guy that showed up a week before the season started, yeah, first game, played over half of that game, and continued to play at a high level all season for us, and gave us a ton of confidence in our offensive line playing," Taylor said about his offensive lineman. "So Dalton's just got, not only as a high talent level, but a wealth of experience brings a lot of veteran leadership to our team and our offense."

The veteran played 767 snaps at right and left guard this past season, notching a career-best 69.4 Pro Football Focus grade (fifth-highest on Bengals among players who logged 350 snaps). He was a mainstay all season and wanted to be in Cincinnati.

He wants Cincinnati to be his last NFL home.

"I truly didn't mean what I said," Risner said about wanting to stay. "I didn't really care to hit free agency and see if someone wanted to sign me to a two or three year deal or maybe pay me more cash per year. I wanted to be a Cincinnati Bengal and it got to a point where we were so close in terms that it was time to get a deal done. So the Bengals did a lot of compromising, and I did a lot of compromising, and we came to a middle point, into a middle ground to sign the deal. And I was so thankful for that."

He got his wish, and now the entire offense can hit the ground running right away when the offseason program begins in a few months.

"Well, it certainly wasn't after the Jacksonville game, that's for sure," Risner said about when he got most comfortable after arriving in Cincinnati. "It was an up and down year. And I say that being okay to say it, because that's just a part of life. Life isn't easy. Was the first time in my whole career I was benched. You have two choices in that moment, and you have to decide, okay, who am I going to be in these moments? And I think once I decided I'm still so grateful to be here, I want to be an example to my future kids. I still have a lot of football left that I know I can play.

"And I think coming back, and when I got that first start at left guard against the Green Bay Packers, and I started at left guard against the Pittsburgh Steelers at home on Thursday night, and those two starts at left guard. That's kind of the position I'm used to. That's a position I've always played my career, other than these last two years, kind of kick started me and got me back to being who Dalton Risner was."

Welcome back, Dalton. pic.twitter.com/O8sPDKR0HA

— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) March 2, 2026

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