With roster cutdown day looming and injuries in their running back room, could the Cincinnati Bengals be poised to reunite with their former running back, Samaje Perine? One Bengals beat writer thinks it’s a definite possibility.
In a recent column for The Athletic, Cincinnati Bengals beat writer Paul Dehner, Jr. floated the idea of the Bengals reuniting with Perine, who was with the team from 2019 to 2022, aside from a brief stint with the Miami Dolphins during the 2019 season. During his four years with the Bengals, Perine rushed for nearly 1,000 yards and had six touchdowns spelling former starting running back Joe Mixon.
Now, Mixon is out of the picture in Cincinnati, having been dealt to the Houston Texans, and Perine may be a victim of roster cuts with the Denver Broncos. Perine was a part-time running back for the Broncos last season, and with the emergence of young talent on their roster could be on the outside looking in.
After losing Chris Evans for the season with a torn patellar tendon, the Bengals could be on the market to improve their depth at the position. Chase Brown has been a standout in this year’s training camp and figures to be the team’s starter, while free agent signee Zack Moss will likely be a rotational back. That leaves just Trayveon Henderson as a backup option. Cincinnati might not be comfortable with that, according to Dehner, and could look to add Perine.
If the Bengals are willing to take on some of Perine’s $4.5 million salary for this season, the two sides could make a trade to bring Perine back to Cincinnati. Otherwise, Dehner believes the Bengals could wait and see if Perine is released, then try to lure him back to the team as a free agent. As a vested veteran, Perine would hit the free agent market immediately, rather than needing to go through the waivers process where the Bengals could lose out to a team with a higher priority.
Either way, it looks like Cincinnati fans may want to start digging through their closets to find those old Perine jerseys, just in case.