We’re 45 days away from the Cincinnati Bengals’ preseason finale against the Philadelphia Eagles. Every day leading up to the end of the preseason and the final cuts that follow, we’ll be profiling a member of the Bengals’ 90-man roster. Check out previous player profiles here.

The next name in the countdown is a bit familiar if you know your Bengals history.

Russ Yeast Player Profile

Age: 27
Year: 3rd
Position: Safety
College: Kansas State
Jersey Number: 39

Russ Yeast was originally drafted No. 253 overall in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. His father, Craig Yeast, was drafted by Cincinnati in the fourth round of the 1999 draft and played two seasons (1999-2000) for the club.

Prior to the NFL, Yeast played four years (2017-2020) at Louisville and the 2021 season at Kansas State. He played in 58 total games with 42 starts, making first-team All-Big 12 during his lone season for the Wildcats as he led the conference in passes defensed (14).

Yeast played in 33 games for the Rams during his first three seasons and made 10 starts, including nine during the 2023 season. His elevation to that role was a direct ramification of the Bengals signing Nick Scott away from L.A. during the ’23 offseason. He only played in one game in 2024 before being waived and subsequently signed to the Carolina Panthers’ practice squad. He was on and off the Panthers for a month and later spent time with the Arizona Cardinals and Houston Texans.

Cincinnati signed Yeast to its practice squad at the start of the 2025 season and spent the entire year there.

Contract details

Yeast signed a futures contract with the Bengals at the beginning of the offseason. He’s under contract for one-year, $1,145,000. His base salary, cash figure, and salary cap hit is all $1.145 million.

Roster outlook

The Bengals are set at the top of the safety position with Bryan Cook, Jordan Battle, and Kyle Dugger. The No. 4 spot is currently held by PJ Jules, but Yeast will have an actual chance of taking it this time around.

Yeast has 322 career special teams snaps and was once a half-season starter for a quality defense. He quietly possesses a decent resume to make the 53-man roster after having a full season of exposure within the scheme.

It would be a cool story for Yeast to make the team like his dad, but he actually has the qualifications to round out the safety room as well.

Roster odds: 35%