Bengals listed as potential landing spot for former Pro Bowl running back

The Cincinnati Bengals have their starting running back for the 2025 NFL season in Chase Brown, who is coming off of a breakout campaign in 2024 in which he ran for 990 yards and seven touchdowns.

But, while Brown will be the starter, the Bengals could still look to bolster the backfield over the offseason. They brought back veteran Samaje Perine for his third stint with the team, but they could also look to add to the position group via the draft or free agency.

Given their need for additional backfield depth, the Bengals were recently listed by RotoBaller as a logical spot for four-time Pro Bowl back Nick Chubb, who has played the entirety of his career with the rival Cleveland Browns to this point.

RotoBaller lists Bengals as a logical destination for Nick Chubb

Chubb returned to action last season after missing over a year with a serious knee injury, and unfortunately he broke his foot toward the end of the '24 campaign. Now, he's a free agent and looking for a new NFL home.

Given age and injury issues, Chubb probably isn't the same back that he once was when he recorded four straight 1,000-plus yard seasons from 2019 to 2022, but he could still be a productive player and a solid supplement to Cincinnati's backfield.

From RotoBaller:

"Chubb could work well in tandem with Brown provided the former is now fully recovered from his 2023 knee injury. Cleveland’s former RB1 wouldn’t operate as a lead back here, but he could have some fantasy value if the Bengals don’t add another running back in the NFL Draft.

"That seems unlikely, but Cincinnati does have other needs to address on this roster. They might use their draft capital to fix those issues and look to fill out the running back room in free agency."

The idea of Cincinnati adding another back in free agency isn't crazy, but it remains to be seen if that would be Chubb. The Bengals could also select a running back in the 2025 NFL Draft, as NFL insider Matthew Berry thinks they will.

Either way, it seems likely that the Bengals will add to the backfield in one way or another before the start of the '25 season.