Throughout the summer leading up to the regular season, we will go through the entire 2024 Cincinnati Bengals roster. Every single day until the season opener against the New England Patriots , we will break down a player on the roster including his background, contract status, and path towards making the team.
Today, we continue our tour through the Bengals' NFL Draft class with a dive into edge defender Cedric Johnson. The second of two sixth-round picks from this year's class, Johnson is also the second Ole Miss defender the Bengals drafted this year along with safety Daijahn Anthony. Let's take a look at how he got to Cincy.
Cedric Johnson
- Age: 21
- Year: 1st
- Position: Edge defender
- College: Ole Miss
- Previous Teams: None
- Jersey Number: 52
Johnson was drafted by the Bengals with the 214th overall pick in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Despite being one of the youngest players Cincinnati drafted, he has 29 starts at an SEC program to his name. He came to Ole Miss, the first SEC school to offer him a scholarship as a three-star recruit, just before his 18th birthday.
After playing just under 150 snaps as a rotational defensive linemen, Johnson earned a starting role as a true sophomore in 2021 and turned in what ended up being his most productive season. He finished the year with 6.5 sacks and 8.0 tackles for loss. Mind you, he only started rushing the passer as a junior in high school.
Johnson played 23 more games (18 starts) from 2022-23, ending up with 19 sacks and 22 tackles for loss in four years of playing time. He led the team in sacks (5.5) in 2023 and was also honored with the Chucky Mullins Courage Award, a prestigious accolade given to an Ole Miss defender who possesses high character qualities.
With an abundance of speed, explosion, and youth on his side, Johnson did enough to earn a draftable grade upon declaring for the 2024 draft. Most outlets had Johnson as a Day 3 prospect, and that's exactly where he ended up in Cincinnati.
Contract details
Johnson signed a four-year, $4,158,388 deal with the Bengals in May that will pay him the minimum salary for the 2024 season.
His salary will cost $795,000 for the entire season if he's kept on the team for the entire regular season, but with a $138,388 signing bonus prorated throughout the deal, his cap hit as of now is $829,597 for the year.
Roster chances
Finding consistent pass rushers to complement Trey Hendrickson has been a struggle for the Bengals in recent years. Joseph Ossai and Cam Sample have held roles as reserves for the past two years, but neither appears to be long for the team following this season. With Hendrickson and Sam Hubbard each approaching 30 with two years left on their respective contracts, the edge position itself lacks any promising long-term player outside of last year's first-round pick Myles Murphy.
This problem is how Johnson can snag a roster spot as a rookie.
Hendrickson, Hubbard, and Murphy are the stone-cold locks to make the team. Beyond that, Johnson beating out one of Ossai or Sample isn't out of the question. His chances in the preseason will be fewer, but if he shows more promise than one of the two, the allure of having him under his four-year deal will be very tempting whereas both Ossai and Sample are free agents after this year. The same goes for Jeff Gunter, who may only be ahead of Johnson on the depth chart due to experience.
It's more likely than not that Johnson ends up being waived during final cuts as his chances of becoming the fifth edge are slim without injuries in front of him. But the long-term aspect of the decision has to play a factor as well.
Chances of making the roster: 25%
Related: Potential surprise cut candidates for all 32 NFL teams ahead of training camp
Previous player breakdowns
Related: Bengals Roster Breakdown: Daijahn Anthony is well prepared to defy odds in the NFL
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