The Cincinnati Bengals went the predictable route with Myles Murphy this offseason.
Those Bengals declined the fifth-year option on Murphy. An extremely rare move for the franchise in an offseason filled with them.
Now, a decision that happened on April 30 is finally starting to get some big attention. Nick Shook of NFL.com just spotlighted 11 players entering “make-or-break” seasons and put Murphy on the list.
“Murphy’s Year 3 jump in production wasn’t enough to convince the Bengals to pick up his fifth-year option, making for a natural prove-it season in a contract year,” Shook wrote. “As it stands now, his future probably isn’t in Cincinnati, unless his rate of compensation fits nicely into the Bengals’ bigger financial picture. But he will sign a second contract somewhere, and now is the time to earn that money.”
Hard to blame the Bengals on this one. They ducked a fully guaranteed roughly $14.4 million in 2027 for Murphy, who finished with a 64.2 PFF grade (67th out of 115 edge defenders) last year.
Make no mistake, the Bengals are still all-in on Murphy, but they wanted the flexibility in 2027 in the wake of moves like trading for Dexter Lawrence. They have much invested on the defensive line now, including the Boye Mafe free-agency contract, a first-round pick on Shemar Stewart and a second-round pick on Cashius Howell.
Call it a good problem to have: If Murphy jumps like they think he might within the improved system in 2026, they will have the cap room to give him a new contract. They’ve structured other deals (like Mafe’s) with flexibility to get out and create space if needed.
That still makes 2026 make or break for Murphy, but there’s little reason to write off his future with the Bengals just yet.
This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: Myles Murphy’s future with Bengals starts getting national attention