The 2022 season was the Cincinnati Bengals' 53rd in the National Football League (NFL), their 55th overall, and their fourth under head coach Zac Taylor. After an 0–2 start, the Bengals quickly turned around, winning 12 out of their last 14 games to match their franchise best record of 12–4. The Bengals improved upon their 10–7 record from the previous season and clinched the AFC North title for the second straight year. Cincinnati's Week 17 game against Buffalo was declared a no-contest after Buffalo safety Damar Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest, resulting in only 16 games played. Despite the incident, they won the AFC North and won their last game to finish 12–4, tied for the best record in the history of the franchise. However, as a result of the cancellation they were deprived of the chance to get the two seed and risked losing home advantage if they lost their last game and coin toss to the Baltimore Ravens and the Los Angeles Chargers beat the Denver Broncos. Instead, they defeated Baltimore 27–16 to avoid that situation.
The Bengals defeated Baltimore 24–17 in the Wild Card round. The most notable play was a fumble recovery and 98-yard touchdown return by defensive end Sam Hubbard after linebacker Logan Wilson stripped the ball from Ravens quarterback Tyler Huntley on a quarterback sneak. The following week, the Bengals traveled to face Buffalo. Despite Buffalo's home-field advantage and snowy conditions, the Bengals prevailed 27–10. With the win, they advanced to the AFC Championship Game for the second consecutive year, a first in franchise history. The Bengals faced Kansas City in Arrowhead Stadium for a rematch of the previous year's contest and found themselves tied 20–20 late into the fourth quarter. However, a personal foul penalty by defensive end Joseph Ossai on Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes would aid a late Kansas City field goal attempt and the Bengals ultimately lost 23–20 to the eventual Super Bowl LVII champions.
Shortly before the beginning of the preseason, the Bengals renamed their stadium Paycor Stadium. The stadium had been named after the team's founder and first head coach, Paul Brown, since it opened in 2000.
Offseason
Free agents
Unrestricted Position Player 2022 Team Date signed Contract QB Brandon Allen Cincinnati Bengals March 17 1 year, $1.5 million S Ricardo AllenRetired CB Eli Apple Cincinnati Bengals March 17 1 year, $4 million S Jessie Bates III Cincinnati Bengals August 23 Franchise tagged CB Jalen Davis Cincinnati Bengals March 3 1 year, $1.035 million LB Jordan Evans Seattle Sea Dragons (XFL) November 18 CB Tre Flowers Cincinnati Bengals April 7 1 year, $1.85 million CB Vernon Hargreaves III LS Clark Harris Cincinnati Bengals March 16 1 year, $1.272 million DT B.J. Hill Cincinnati Bengals March 14 3 years, $30 million P Kevin Huber Cincinnati Bengals May 2 1 year, $1.85 million DT Larry Ogunjobi Pittsburgh Steelers June 21 1 year, $8 million CB Darius Phillips Las Vegas Raiders March 15 1 year, $1.5 million OT Riley Reiff Chicago Bears July 26 1 year, $3 million G Quinton Spain WR Auden Tate Atlanta Falcons March 28 1 year, $1.120 million S Michael Thomas Cincinnati Bengals March 16 1 year, $1.135 million WR Mike Thomas Cincinnati Bengals March 17 1 year, $1.120 million DT Josh Tupou Cincinnati Bengals March 17 2 years, $3 million TE C. J. Uzomah New York Jets March 14 3 years, $24 million
Restricted Position Player 2022 Team Date signed Contract WR Stanley Morgan Jr. Cincinnati Bengals March 21 2 years, $2.295 million
Exclusive rights Position Player 2022 Team Date signed Contract WR Trenton Irwin Cincinnati Bengals March 21 1 year, $825k LB Clay Johnston Cincinnati Bengals April 7 1 year, $825k DE Wyatt Ray Jacksonville Jaguars June 15 1 year, $895k TE Mitchell Wilcox Cincinnati Bengals April 8 1 year, $825k
Signings Position Player 2021 Team Date signed Contract G Alex Cappa Tampa Bay Buccaneers March 14 4 years, $35 million C Ted Karras New England Patriots March 14 3 years, $18 million TE Hayden Hurst Atlanta Falcons March 17 1 year, $3.5 million OT La'el Collins Dallas Cowboys March 20 3 years, $21 millionTENick EubanksDetroit LionsApril 5 1 year, $705kCBAbu Daramy-SwarayPotsdam Royals (GFL)May 13 1 year, $705k
Releases Position Player Date released 2022 Team Contract C Trey Hopkins March 18 CB Trae Waynes March 21 G Fred Johnson March 22 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1 year, $1.525 million
Draft
2022 Cincinnati Bengals Draft Round Selection Player Position College Notes 1 31 Daxton Hill S Michigan 2 60 Cam Taylor-Britt CB Nebraska from Tampa Bay via Buffalo 63 Traded to Buffalo 3 95 Zachary Carter DT Florida 4 136 Cordell Volson OT North Dakota State 5 166 Tycen Anderson S Toledo from Arizona via Philadelphia, Houston and Chicago 174 Traded to Chicago 6 209 Traded to Buffalo 7 226 Traded to Chicago from NY Giants 252 Jeffrey Gunter DE Coastal Carolina Draft trades
+ 2022 Cincinnati Bengals undrafted free agents Name Position College Ref. Cal Adomitis LS Pittsburgh Ben Brown G, C Ole Miss Devin Cochran OT Georgia Tech Allan George CB Vanderbilt Jaivon Heiligh WR Coastal Carolina Clarence Hicks LB UTSA Delonte Hood CB Peru State Shermari Jones RB Coastal Carolina Kwamie Lassiter II WR Kansas Desmond Noel G Florida Atlantic Kendric Pryor WR Wisconsin Bookie Radley-Hiles S, CB Washington Justin Rigg TE Kentucky Jack Sorenson WR Miami (OH) Tariqious Tisdale DT, DE Ole Miss Carson Wells LB Colorado Drew Plitt QB Ball State
Staff
Final roster
NFL Top 100
Rank Player Position Change 21 Joe Burrow QB NR 24 Ja'Marr Chase WR NR 38 Joe Mixon RB NR 78 Trey Hendrickson DE 5
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 Arizona Cardinals L 23–36 0–1 Paycor Stadium Recap 2 August 21 at New York Giants L 22–25 0–2 MetLife Stadium Recap 3 Los Angeles Rams W 16–7 1–2 Paycor Stadium Recap
Regular season
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 September 11 Pittsburgh Steelers L 20–23 0–1 Paycor Stadium Recap 2 September 18 at Dallas Cowboys L 17–20 0–2 AT&T Stadium Recap 3 September 25 at New York Jets W 27–12 1–2 MetLife Stadium Recap 4 Miami Dolphins W 27–15 2–2 Paycor Stadium Recap 5 October 9 at Baltimore Ravens L 17–19 2–3 M&T Bank Stadium Recap 6 October 16 at New Orleans Saints W 30–26 3–3 Caesars Superdome Recap 7 October 23 Atlanta Falcons W 35–17 4–3 Paycor Stadium Recap 8 at Cleveland Browns L 13–32 4–4 FirstEnergy Stadium Recap 9 November 6 Carolina Panthers W 42–21 5–4 Paycor Stadium Recap 10Bye 11 November 20 at Pittsburgh Steelers W 37–30 6–4 Acrisure Stadium Recap 12 November 27 at Tennessee Titans W 20–16 7–4 Nissan Stadium Recap 13 December 4 Kansas City Chiefs W 27–24 8–4 Paycor Stadium Recap 14 December 11 Cleveland Browns W 23–10 9–4 Paycor Stadium Recap 15 December 18 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 34–23 10–4 Raymond James Stadium Recap 16 at New England Patriots W 22–18 11–4 Gillette Stadium Recap 17 Buffalo BillsNo contest 18 January 8 Baltimore Ravens W 27–16 12–4 Paycor Stadium Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 1: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
The Bengals started the 2022 season against their division rival Steelers in Cincinnati. The Steelers scored first in the first quarter when Minkah Fitzpatrick returned an interception 31 yards for a touchdown to make it 7–0. The Bengals made it 7–3 when Evan McPherson made a 59-yard field goal which was the longest in franchise history. The Steelers then went ahead 10–3 after Chris Boswell kicked a 20-yard field goal. In the second quarter, the Steelers moved ahead 17–3 after Mitchell Trubisky found Najee Harris on a 1-yard touchdown pass. The Bengals drew closer at halftime when McPherson made a 26-yard field goal to make it 17–6. After the break, the Bengals came within 3 in the third quarter when Joe Burrow found Tyler Boyd on a 2-yard touchdown pass (with a successful 2-point conversion) to make it 17–14. In the fourth quarter, the Steelers moved ahead by 6 when Boswell kicked a 48-yard field goal to make it 20–14. Later on in the quarter, the Bengals tied the game when Burrow found Ja'Marr Chase on a 6-yard touchdown pass. (with a blocked PAT) to send the game into overtime tied at 20–20. After going back and forth on possessions, the Steelers managed to win the game when Boswell kicked the game winning 53-yard field goal with seconds left to make the final score 23–20.
With their 3-game winning streak against the Steelers snapped, the Bengals started the season 0–1. Wins by the Browns and Ravens would leave them at the bottom of the AFC North. Joe Burrow committed 5 turnovers throughout the course of the game (4 interceptions, 1 lost fumble).
Week 2: at Dallas Cowboys
Despite a fourth quarter comeback, the Bengals allowed the Cowboys to claim the win by marching down the field in the dying seconds of the game. With the loss, Cincinnati dropped to 0–2. This marked the third 0–2 start in four seasons, as well as the first team since the 2015 Seattle Seahawks to start 0–2 after playing in the Super Bowl the year prior. This also marked the first 0–2 start by a defending AFC champion since the 1999 Denver Broncos started 0–4 after winning Super Bowl XXXIII. The Bengals once again failed to beat the Cowboys, not having done so since 2004, and extended their losing streak against them to five games.
Week 3: at New York Jets
After a disappointing 0–2 start to the season, the Bengals bounced back with a win against the Jets. Trey Hendrickson had 2.5 sacks, including 2 forced fumbles, and Joe Burrow threw for 275 yards and 3 touchdowns with no interceptions, preventing an 0–3 start.
Week 4: vs. Miami Dolphins
On Thursday Night Football, the Bengals defeated the Miami Dolphins 27–15. The Bengals had a quick start, getting a touchdown in the first possession of the game from Joe Mixon. The Bengals defense also held the Dolphins offense to 1 touchdown.
Week 5: at Baltimore Ravens
In a primetime showdown on NBC, the Ravens won on a crucial 43-yard Justin Tucker field goal. With the loss, the Bengals dropped to 2–3.
Week 6: at New Orleans Saints
With 1:57 left on the clock and a 2-point deficit, Joe Burrow connected with Ja'Marr Chase for a 60-yard touchdown, essentially winning the game. With the win, the Bengals improved to 3–3 and returned to .500
Week 7: vs. Atlanta Falcons
The Bengals jumped out to a 28–17 halftime lead before scoring the only points in the second half to make it 35–17 and improved to 4–3.
Week 8: at Cleveland Browns
In the 2022 Battle of Ohio Round 1, the Browns made it an 11–0 halftime lead, scoring all the first half points in the second quarter. After the third quarter, they had made it 25–0. The Bengals finally got on the board in the fourth quarter, making it 25–6 by way of Joe Burrow's 13-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Boyd (with a failed PAT). Though, the Browns scored again, making it 32–6 with Nick Chubb's 11-yard touchdown run. Joe Burrow connected with Tee Higgins on a 41-yard touchdown pass for the final points of the game, making it 32–13.
The loss dropped the Bengals to 4–4. Joe Burrow's personal starting record against the Browns dropped to 0–4. This was the Bengals' only loss of the season by more than 3 points.
Week 9: vs. Carolina Panthers
The Bengals jumped out to lead 35–0 at halftime before the Panthers finally got on the board in the third with Baker Mayfield's 8-yard touchdown pass to Tommy Tremble, making it 35–7. The Bengals made it 42–7 by way of Joe Mixon's 14-yard touchdown run. The Panthers scored the remaining points in the fourth, making the final score 42–21.
The Bengals were able to go into their bye week 5–4, which was coincidentally the same record they had in the first 9 games on the previous season.
Week 11: at Pittsburgh Steelers