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The Cincinnati Bengals finished 9-8 in 2024, missing the playoffs for the second straight season. Hoping to turn things around in 2025, the Bengals have been busy this offseason, continuing extension talks with Ja’Marr Chase and franchise tagging fellow wideout Tee Higgins. On Monday, Cincinnati turned to free agency to bring back a familiar face.
The Bengals signed running back Samaje Perine to a two-year deal worth $3.8 million, according to Mike Garafolo on X.
Perine has spent four of his eight NFL seasons with the Bengals. And now he’ll continue his career in Cincinnati after one-year stints with the Denver Broncos in 2023 and the Kansas City Chiefs in 2024.
Veteran RB Samaje Perine is back with the Bengals
The soon-to-be 30-year-old veteran had his best-overall season with the Bengals in 2022, when he finished with 681 total yards and six touchdowns. Perine has never worked as a lead back in the NFL as he’s best utilized as a third-down option who’s trusted in pass protection and can operate as a receiver out of the backfield.
In 2023, he caught 50 passes for the Broncos for 455 yards. However, Perine’s time in Denver was short. After one season the team attempted to trade him before ultimately releasing the RB. The Chiefs were quick to pounce on Perine, who could provide valuable backfield depth. And he immediately found a role in Andy Reid’s offense.
Perine was with the Chiefs as they attempted to become the first team to three-peat as champions in 2024. Kansas City reached the Super Bowl but lost to the Eagles, falling just short of making football history.
Perine has played in three AFC Championship Games and two Super Bowls, although he’s yet to win a title. His first shot at a championship came after the 2021 season when the Bengals lost to the LA Rams. Perine actually got the ball on a pivotal 3rd-down play late in the game instead of Joe Mixon and couldn’t convert. Cincinnati would go on to lose 23-20.
With Mixon now on the Texans, the Bengals have turned to Chase Brown as the lead back. That will likely continue in 2025 as Brown enters his third year in the league. However, there’s a place for Perine in Cincinnati’s backfield as backup rusher Zack Moss is unlikely to return to the team after an injury-plagued season. If Moss were to get cut, the team would save around $3 million in cap space.
