Dexter Lawrence, B.J. Hill Know Bengals 'Mean Business' After Busy 2026 Offseason

Bengals radio voice Dan Hoard sat down for an interview with defensive tackles B.J. Hill and Dexter Lawrence recently to discuss their friendship and expected impact from a new-look Cincinnati defense this fall.

The Bengals traded their 10th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft for Lawrence. An All-Pro level defensive mauler that lined up his time in New York with Hill's earlier this decade.

The duo is ready to let the NFL world know that the Bengals "mean business."

"That we're here to win games," Hill said to Hoard on what message the trade sends to the rest of the league. "It's not even just him, just who we brought in this offseason. We mean business, and we're ready to win games. Ready to win now."

Lawrence echoed him.

"Now we're back together, and it's time to take advantage of it. I told him, like, when I first got here, we're not gonna waste this moment. So that's what it's about,"Lawrence declared.

The two buddies have gotten to hang out a lot more with both now living in Cincinnati, and described what the other means to them.

Mauling Pals

Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle B.J. Hill (92) prepares to take the field for the first quarter of the NFL Week 2 game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Jacksonville Jaguars at Paycor Stadium in downtown Cincinnati on Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025. The Jaguars led 17-10 at halftime. | Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"His personality, if you ask anybody around the building, he's a guy that gets along with anybody, but he's true to himself always, and I can respect that a lot," Lawrence said about Hill.

"My mind is more like off the field, like to see who he is as a man," Hill said about Lawrence. "He always has your back, no matter what. He's a guy who cares about his brother, who's always going to take care of his brother, and always be there for you."

A friendship like this should only help the whole defense (the front especially) come together even better over the next few months.

Having those bonds on and off the field is what separates the elite teams in the toughest moments at the end of those highly-contested NFL Playoff games.

It was a tough moment for both when Hill was traded away from Lawrence and the Giants in 2021. But that's fully in the rear-view mirror now.

"I ain't believe him at first. I was trying to fight it, but to be honest, I think everything happens for a reason, and I think me watching that, and then talking to him almost every day he was here, and now we're back together, and trying to take advantage of it. As I told him when I first got here, he said we're not gonna waste this moment, so that's what it's about," Lawrence said.

Hill isn't too sad about how it all played out, especially getting to play with Lawrence now.

"I probably had one of my best (training) camps I ever had there just to give myself a chance to get on the field there," Hill said about the 2021 trade and its impact on him. "Leaving some of your best friends, it sucks, especially when you've been there for almost four years. It sucked, but everything happens for a reason. I'm here for a reason, and that's to win games.

Check out the full chat with Hoard below:

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