Cincinnati Bengals Extend Veteran Backups' Contract

Cincinnati is in the beginning of a huge offseason.

Oct 12, 2025; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; Cincinnati Bengals tight end Tanner Hudson (87) and quarterback Jake Browning (6) walk off the field after the game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Kayla Wolf-Imagn Images | Kayla Wolf-Imagn Images

CINCINNATI — The Bengals are extending Tanner Hudson's time with the team for one more season. The veteran tight end inked a one-year contract extension on Monday to roll out with Cincinnati for the 2026 season.

The backup tight end has played in 38 games with two starts for Cincinnati since joining the team in 2022. He has caught 77 passes for 674 yards and four TDs for the Bengals, including 19 catches for 168 yards and two TDs in the 2025 campaign.

Director of player personnel Duke Tobin and the Bengals are aiming to beef up the team through free agency and the NFL Draft this offseason.

"All I can do is work us out of it," Tobin said earlier this month. "We have done it before. We have done it before with a team full of draft choices and had high-level football teams. We have done it before with a blend of free agents and draft choices, and then we have also taken us to the Super Bowl with several UFA signings. We can add to the team in a lot of different areas. We have excellent scouts who give us the analysis. It’s on us to make the right decisions. Even if you want a player, it doesn’t mean you get them. It doesn’t mean you get them in the draft. It doesn’t mean you get them in free agency. The whole puzzle has to fit together. We work to fit the puzzle together in the best way we can."

Hudson should be another backup option for Cincinnati this coming season after catching those 19 passes and two touchdowns across the past six months.

We have signed TE Tanner Hudson to a one-year contract extension.

📰: https://t.co/gCFFpjKPdO pic.twitter.com/wRX5NTfwud

— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) January 19, 2026

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