Bengals Drawing Buzz as Fit for Bears All-Pro Safety Ahead of Free Agency

The Cincinnati Bengals need to be aggressive with their money in free agency. They have plenty to spend, as Spotrac states they have $53 million in cap space this offseason. They could free up more money with contract restructures and potential roster cuts in the coming weeks.

Either way, the Bengals have enough money to make a splash in free agency if they wanted to. They might not have $30 million to re-sign Trey Hendrickson to a massive deal, but they should have enough to add multiple talented players to their defense.

PFF's Mason Cameron recently listed the Bengals as the top landing spot in free agency for Chicago Bears safety Kevin Byard, who's coming off an All-Pro season in Chicago.

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"Much of that comes down to the personnel not fitting the mold with which Golden aims to model his defense after: a single-high structure that plays sticky man coverage," Cameron wrote. "As defensive coordinator at Notre Dame, Golden finished in the top 12 in Cover-1 usage each season, concluding in a staggering 52.3% rate in 2024 — the highest in the nation. If the Bengals hope to resemble that, it starts with the safety position.

"Byard is a true deep center fielder with natural ball-hawking skills. Over the past three seasons, the veteran safety has produced a 90.4 PFF coverage grade as the deep-free and deep-third defender. That capability allows him to make plays on the ball, having secured an NFL-leading seven interceptions for the Bears this past season. His experience would also provide a veteran voice in the coverage unit, something sorely lacking in Cincinnati this past season."

Byard is coming off a huge year with the Bears. He recorded seven interceptions, eight passes defended, and four tackles for loss. This production earned him a spot on the All-Pro first team.

He's likely due for a solid contract, but his age should stop him from being priced out of the Bengals budget. As a result, Cincinnati should have the chance to put in a solid bid for the veteran safety.

Adding a shutdown safety to the backend of the Bengals defense would go a long way toward improving the unit. This would allow the Bengals to focus on a different position with their No. 10 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.

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