Bengals Player Profile: Oren Burks remains the experienced cog in Cincinnati’s linebacker machine
The Cincinnati Bengals relied on Oren Burks as their first linebacker off the bench last year, and after keeping the position group virtually the same this offseason, that is expected to be his role this season as well.
We’re 25 days away from the Cincinnati Bengals’ preseason finale against the Philadelphia Eagles. Every day leading up to final cuts, we’ll profile a player on the Bengals’ 90-man roster. Check out previous player profiles here.
The next player in the countdown is the eldest player at his position on Cincinnati’s roster.
Oren Burks Player Profile
Age: 31
Year: 9th
Position: Linebacker
College: Vanderbilt
Jersey Number: 42
Oren Burks was originally selected No. 88 overall in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers. Prior to the NFL, Burks played four years at Vanderbilt (2014-17), starting 40 of the 45 games he played for the Commodores.
Burks spent his entire rookie contract with the Packers, playing key special teams roles for Green Bay while occasionally seeing the field on defense. San Francisco signed him to his first free agent contract in 2022 and utilized him in a very similar way that season before needing him to play a career-high 433 defensive snaps in 2023. Philadelphia was next in 2024 and turned to him to start five of the Eagles’ last six games including their Super Bowl LIX victory over the Kansas City Chiefs.
Cincinnati signed Burks as a free agent last offseason to help replace Akeem Davis-Gaither. He ended up starting nine of the 17 games he played at LB as the position was in disarray for most of the season. He finished with 14 tackles on special teams, which ranked fourth on the team.
Contract details
Burks is entering the second year of his two-year, $5,000,000 deal signed last offseason. His base salary for 2026 is $1,690,000. He can also earn $510,000 in per game roster bonuses, and has already earned 100,000 in a workout bonus. His total cash figure for the year is $2,300,000. When adding on his signing bonus proration of $375,000, his salary cap hit for the season is $2,675,000.
Roster outlook
The Bengals relied on Burks as LB3 last year, and after keeping the position group virtually the same this offseason, that is expected to be his role this season as well.
Burks had to come on the field plenty of times for Demetrius Knight Jr. last season. The veteran didn’t make Cincy’s LB woes any better, but he still has value on special teams and isn’t costing that much to roster.
There may be a small percentage chance he gets cut in case an influx of young backers prove better than him this month. I am expecting the most experienced player in the room to make the team and retain his role above all else.
Roster odds: 97%
