The Cincinnati Bengals can only watch Super Bowl LIX from home and contemplate what might have been after finishing the 2024 season with five consecutive wins and barely missing out on the playoffs. But, while the Bengals won’t be playing in the big game, some of their former players will be.
Here’s a look at four former Bengals who will be competing for a championship on football’s biggest stage in a couple weeks.
Jake Elliott, Kicker, Philadelphia Eagles
Eagles kicker Jake Elliott had the NFL equivalent of a one-night stand with the Bengals. Cincinnati drafted him in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL draft. But his stint did not last long. For the newer Bengals fans who were not around in 2017, there was a kicker that the team could not quit, whom some affectionately referred to as “Fat Randy.”
The coaching staff decided to go with Randy Bullock as their kicker for the 2017 season rather than their young, power-legged fifth-round pick. Elliott signed with the Bengals practice squad, but the Eagles signed Elliot to their roster a week into the regular season.
Elliott and the Eagles went on to win the Super Bowl that season, with the rookie kicker leading their team in scoring.
Super Bowl LIX will be Elliott’s third appearance in the Big Game with the Eagles. His second appearance was in 2023 when the Eagles lost to the Chiefs, 38-35.
Fred Johnson, Offensive tackle, Eagles
Another year, another offseason in which we know that the offensive line is neither good nor deep enough to protect Joe Burrow consistently.
Some will be surprised to learn that arguably the best offensive line in the NFL this season had a former Cincinnati Bengals lineman play an integral role. Offensive tackle Fred Johnson came to Cincinnati via waivers after he was released by the Steelers in 2019. Johnson signed with Pittsburgh as a rookie free agent that year. He spent three seasons with the Bengals before moving on in 2021.
In 2021, Johnson played in Tampa Bay before flying high with the Eagles. He just missed out on Cincinnati’s Super Bowl run in 2021.
Philadelphia made it to the Super Bowl in the 2022 season while Johnson was on the practice squad. Johnson earned playing time as a valuable backup in the 2023 and 2024 seasons. An opportunity he didn’t necessarily think would come his way again.
"I almost cried on the sideline, I ain't gonna lie."
Fred Johnson stepped in for an injured Lane Johnson and held it down on the right side for the Eagles during their comeback win against the Saints. pic.twitter.com/Cp6H9mLqkP
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) September 23, 2024
Against the Bengals in Week 9 of this season, Johnson returned to the Queen City and got the better of Trey Hendrickson, who had been on a tear for seven consecutive games with a sack. In that game, Johnson allowed one pressure on 22 pass attempts.
Congratulations to Johnson, who gets to participate in his second Super Bowl, this time as a pivotal backup and the first guy off the bench in “heavy” situations.
CJ Uzomah, Tight end, Eagles
Another former Bengals player on the Eagles roster is tight end C.J. Uzomah. Unfortunately, the veteran tight end can’t play in the big game. Nevertheless, his ring will be as shiny as the others if Philadelphia wins.
Like Elliot, Uzomah was a fifth-round pick by the Bengals. In 2015, Cincinnati selected him 157th overall out of Auburn. Uzomah played seven seasons for the Bengals, amassing 163 catches, 1,591 yards, and 13 touchdowns.
In his final season with the Bengals, he had 49 catches, 493 yards, and five touchdowns, which are career highs he has not come remotely close to replicating since leaving Cincinnati.
Hopefully, Elliot, Johnson, and Uzomah can add a Super Bowl 59 victory to their already-impressive resumes.
Samaje Perine, Running back, Kansas City Chiefs
Former Bengals running back Samaje Perine will suit up in the Super Bowl for the Kansas City Chiefs. Perine made his way to the ‘dark side’ when he signed with Kansas City this past offseason, much to the chagrin of Bengals fans.
Perine sealed the victory for the Chiefs against the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship with his catch and run on third down in the waning moments of the fourth quarter.
Samaje Perine picks up clutch the first down!
📺: #BUFvsKC on CBS
📱: Stream on @NFLPlus and Paramount+ pic.twitter.com/s8PD07o4ux— NFL (@NFL) January 27, 2025
Perine making a critical catch in the most pressurized situations is something that Bengals fans have seen before. In the 2021 season, Perine was critical to Cincinnati’s success. He was a valuable backup to Joe Mixon and a valuable pass blocker to help protect Burrow, who was constantly in front of a deluge of pressure every week.
This is Perine’s second trip to the Super Bowl. His first, with the Bengals, did not end how any of us had hoped for.
As Bengals fans who love former players, we would love for Perine to get a ring. But not now, and not with that organization.
Perine’s presence would be the only thing about another Chiefs Super Bowl win worth celebrating. That is, until next season when the Bengals could put themselves in position to prevent the Chiefs from going to their fourth consecutive Super Bowl.
