Risner allowed one sack, two hits and 21 pressures in 398 pass-blocking snaps last year over the final nine games of 2024 with the Minnesota Vikings, and he’s given up just 11 total sacks in six years in the NFL, including a four-year stint with the Denver Broncos (2019-2022) before joining the Vikings in 2023.
The former second-round draft pick began last season on injured reserve.
“I think he’s going to help us a ton,” Bengals left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. said when asked of his familiarity with Risner moments after news broke he would be signing. “Everybody knows what he’s done in the league, honestly, even in college from what I remember. I think he went to Kansas State, right? Yeah, so I’m a little familiar with his game. He’s been that dawg, so I look forward to meeting him and being able to get to working with him here.”
“He’s a dawg, he’s got tremendous feet, he does a great job of using his hands in pass protection,” Brown added. “He’s a really big guy, as well, so it sounds like a mesh and an easy fit in our room.”
The 6-foot-5, 312-pound Risner had recently visited with the Bengals but explored other options as well after an extended time as a free agent all offseason. He is expected to step into a starting role at right guard, where Lucas Patrick has struggled to grab a hold of the job after a competition with Cody Ford in camp.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Cincinnati ended up keeping just eight offensive linemen after making cuts to get the roster down to 53 players. Bengals coach Zac Taylor said Tuesday he felt good about the progress made at right guard this preseason, but noted that director of player personnel Duke Tobin and his staff would continue to work through evaluating options.
Brown said it will take some time for Risner to settle in and for the offensive line to develop chemistry with a newcomer, but it shouldn’t be difficult.
“I give a lot of credit to our front office,” Brown said. “They bring in a lot of people in our room. We’re one of the biggest rooms in the building, and in terms of personalities, we all mesh very well, and I think Scott (Peters) does a good job of managing that, as well. They’ve done a really good job bringing in the right people, so I imagine just being himself will be enough.”
Cincinnati will need to make room on the roster for Risner, but the Bengals have not yet announced a signing or corresponding move.
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