'Certainly Workable' - NFL Insider Gives Final Update on Bengals Extension Candidates Entering 2026 Season

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler joined the First Word With James Rapien crew this morning and touched on contract extension probabilities for a few of Cincinnati's candidates with just four days left in the offseason.

It doesn't sound like anyone is likely to get extended from DJ Turner II to Chase Brown, although the latter seems most likely to get a deal out of anyone.

Longshots

Sep 29, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Cincinnati Bengals cornerback DJ Turner II (20) comes off the field after the game at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

He went in depth on the probabilities after stating last week there's "virtually no chance" Cincinnati extends Turner before the season.

"I don't sense much hope here," Fowler said on the show. "DJ Turner was the one where I pretty much earmarked as a no-green-light here. I don't expect the deal to happen for him based on a few factors. One is these cornerbacks are getting outrageous money now. You have several guys that are well above $30 million per year. So if you're DJ Turner, who's an ascending player who could do really well in free agency, you're not going to take what many would consider a much more reasonable deal or a much lower deal than what that market would bear, and so it's sort of my understanding it's a non-starter unless something perks up in the next five days and Cincinnati gets aggressive.

"I don't expect a deal for him, so he'll play it out, and then you're looking at doing really well in free agency, or he could get the franchise tag, which Cincinnati has done in the past. I think the tag for corners would be about $23 million, which is pretty reasonable in this climate. You know, they've done it with Jesse Bates, another star defensive back who was up and coming. He had to play through the tag, so it seems like that could be a similar script for Turner."

Cincinnati did not use the franchise tag this offseason, but it seems almost a foregone conclusion that one of their stars will get it next year, whether it be Brown, Turner, or Dax Hill (if he has a big 2026 season).

The running back market has ballooned around Brown to a peak of $22.5 million for Jahmyr Gibbs at the top, but it would be hard for the former Illinois rusher to get that from any team in free agency.

He seems like the most likely to get extended in the final days here, but don't expect any of those deals to happen.

"I haven't heard of anything hard and fast about an extension for some of those players, but they're certainly workable if Cincinnati wants to get aggressive here," Fowler concluded. "Chase Brown, who I think will have a big year, and the running back money is a little more reasonable than some of these other positions. So yeah, he's certainly a player that I had on my list, at least as somebody who could get an extension at some point. Myles Murphy's in an interesting spot where they didn't pick up his fifth-year option, but he's a year away from free agency now. Had a good camp from all indications.

"So certainly, defensive linemen are the kind of guys you want to keep in the fold and try to pay. So Cincinnati can be patient here. You can play it out, see how things go. This is a big year. Nobody disputes that. They have a lot on the table here that they got to figure out. After a few down years, there's no reason to have to overreact and pay players now."

Watch their full conversation below:

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