The Bengals have until May 2nd to decide whether to pick up the fifth-year option on DB Daxton Hill or not.
Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic expects the Bengals to exercise the fifth-year option on Hill, which will only cost around $13 million for 2026.
Dehner cited director of player personnel Duke Tobin’s words about Hill that express his thoughts on the former first-round pick. Tobin praised Hill’s versatility and was impressed by his handling of the move from safety to the outside corner before suffering a torn ACL.
“He was about to really explode,” Tobin said. “He was playing well and we’re going to be talking about a very, very fine corner. Wherever Al [Golden] decides to line him up. If he lines him up inside, outside, wherever we’re going to be talking about a fantastic player. He just needs to get back. And normally the second year off an ACL is a little easier than the first year, but I think he’s such a dynamic athlete that he might show us that the first year is just as good.”
Hill, 24, was a three-year starter at Michigan and earned first-team All-Big Ten honors in 2021. The Bengals used the No. 31 overall pick on him in the 2022 draft.
He signed a four-year, $11,667,014 contract that includes a $5,665,101 signing bonus. There is also a fifth-year option for the team to pick up in 2025.
In 2024, Hill appeared in five games for the Bengals and recorded 24 tackles and one sack in four starts.
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