Former Bengals player formally says his goodbye to Cincinnati after surprising release from the team
Former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Trenton Irwin has officially cleared waivers and is able to sign anywhere. He can even rejoin the Bengals on the practice squad where he spent most of his time from 2019-20. That doesn't look like it'll be happening this time. Per WLWT's Charlie Clifford, Irwin is not expected to come […]
Former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Trenton Irwin has officially cleared waivers and is able to sign anywhere. He can even rejoin the Bengals on the practice squad where he spent most of his time from 2019-20.
That doesn't look like it'll be happening this time. Per WLWT's Charlie Clifford, Irwin is not expected to come back for a practice squad spot as he'll pursue other interested teams instead.
Cincinnati has one practice squad spot open after signing linebacker Shaka Heyward to the active roster, which was made possible by waiving Irwin in the first place. The team already has two receivers on the practice squad in Cole Burgess and Kendric Pryor and six remain on the active roster.
Irwin himself took to Instagram to officially say his goodbye to the Bengals and Cincinnati. In all likelihood, he'll be on another roster in another city very soon.
If this is the end of Irwin's Bengals career, it was an admirable one all things considered. Irwin signed with the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent following the 2019 NFL Draft before finding himself on the Bengals' practice squad later that year. He caught his first pass in Week 16 of the 2020 season. He eventually earned a full-time promotion to the active roster during the 2021 campaign, and re-signed with the club as a free agent for the first time in 2022, the year he hauled in four touchdowns.
2023 was Irwin's best year by far, playing 16 games (five starts) and posting 25 receptions for 316 yards and one touchdown. He also took over as the team's punt returner while Charlie Jones missed time due to a thumb injury.
Irwin again re-upped with the team this past offseason for another year, but 2024 has not been one to remember for him. He only played in seven games this year, catching three passes for 15 yards. He continued cutting his teeth as a punt-returner and only managed an average of seven yards per return.
Now 28 years old, Irwin will look to continue his NFL career elsewhere. It's uncommon for UDFAs to last more than a couple seasons in the league, so he already beat the odds. Now it's about how long he can keep going.
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