Dalton Risner has secured another opportunity late in free agency. Making a habit of signing well after the market opens, the veteran guard is joining the Bengals, veteran reporter Jordan Schultz tweets.
The former Broncos and Vikings guard had visited the Bengals recently. He will look to fill a void as a starter on an O-line that has four other locked-in first-stringers.
Both the Seahawks and Steelers showed interest in Risner, whose market once again did not form after he spent a season as a primary starter. Underperforming in free agency has perhaps defined Risner’s career, but the former second-round pick has continued to bounce back from those disappointments to extend his run as an NFL starter. The Bengals are adding a guard with 81 starts on his resume.
Back in April, the Bengals were on the Risner radar. They will add him after an underwhelming guard audition. Cody Ford and Lucas Patrick joined Cordell Volson in competing for the team’s right guard job. Third-round pick Dylan Fairchild is set to take over at left guard, and the Bengals have yet another veteran option for the other spot. Ford joined Risner in the 2019 second round, while Patrick arrived as a 2017 UDFA.
Risner started 19 games for the Vikings over the past two seasons. He waited until September 2023 to sign with Minnesota but re-signed in June 2024. Pro Football Focus graded Risner as the No. 22 overall guard last season. Risner replaced Ed Ingram in the Vikes’ starting lineup midway through last season. The team dropped Ingram via trade (to the Texans) this offseason and once again let Risner linger in free agency. The Vikes overhauled their interior O-line — via the signings of Ryan Kelly and Will Fries and first-round investment in Donovan Jackson — and Risner will spend his age-30 season in Cincinnati.
The Bengals retained Patrick and Ford on their active roster but waived Volson — a three-year starter who was benched late last season — with an injury designation. Volson reverted to IR today. Risner has experience replacing starters in-season, having done so in 2023 (after the Ezra Cleveland trade) and 2024. The Bengals may need him earlier, however.