Bengals Defense Desperately Needs One Player to Step Up Down the Stretch

CINCINNATI — Bengals rookie Shemar Stewart will play on Sunday for the first time since Week 9 against the Bears. He's been dealing with a knee injury.

The Bengals selected Stewart in the first round (17th overall) in the 2025 NFL Draft. He has six tackles in five games this season.

The Bengals really need their rookie pass rusher to show he can be a building block moving forward. Cincinnati currently ranks 29th in pass rush win rate according to Next Gen Stats.

Trey Hendrickson's departure feels inevitable. Myles Murphy has flashed in recent weeks. Joseph Ossai is set to become a free agent this offseason.

The Bengals need Stewart to show he can be one of their building blocks moving forward.

Bengals head coach Zac Taylor sounds confident in Stewart's talent and ability to make an impact on defense.

“I like he sits in the front row of the team meetings, man. He's all eyes on me when I'm up there presenting. He does a great job taking it all in," Taylor said this week. "Jerry's (Montgomery) office is right next to mine. I can see the attitude he's got every single day. And so I'm fired up when we do get him out there, whether it's this week or not, for the future that he's got here because he's a guy that I'm really high on.”

He seemed pretty active, I mean, like in August. He just seemed to be active before he got hurt.

The Bengals activated Stewart from injured reserve on Friday. He'll get his chance.

"I look forward to getting him on the field and letting him make an impact for us because I know when he's healthy he'll be able to do that," Taylor said.

The Bengals are clearly confident in Stewart. He's looking for the first sack of his NFL career. Getting it on Sunday against the Dolphins would be big for him and a defense looking to build a solid foundation for next season.

“I never missed a game in college. I never missed a practice in college. Coming in here and missing 10 weeks is just hard on the mental,” Stewart said this week. "I just want to go out there and be a consistent player."

Stewart will get his chance on Sunday in Miami.

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It’s a big week of practice for Bengals rookie Shemar Stewart. Would be huge if he could get back on the field. He’s remains on injured reserve with a knee injury. pic.twitter.com/cmrTAFNVMY
— James Rapien (@JamesRapien) December 17, 2025

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