The Cincinnati Bengals’ defensive line depth continues to be tested as they prepare for a pivotal AFC North showdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Rookie defensive end Shemar Stewart, a first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, has been ruled out for Sunday’s game and will miss at least three more contests due to a knee injury.
The Cincinnati Bengals’ defensive line depth is being pushed to its limits ahead of a critical AFC North clash with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Rookie defensive end Shemar Stewart — the team’s first-round selection in the 2025 NFL Draft — has been ruled out for Sunday’s game and will be placed on injured reserve, sidelining him for a minimum of three additional weeks due to a knee injury.
Defensive Line Depth Tested as Bengals Brace for Steelers Showdown
Stewart’s rookie season has been defined more by the training room than the field.
This knee injury follows an ankle injury that already cost him four games earlier in the year, and the IR designation now threatens to wipe out a significant portion of his debut campaign.
In the five games he did appear in, Stewart logged six tackles and a quarterback hit — modest numbers, but enough to hint at the pass-rush upside that made him a coveted prospect.
NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero confirmed the IR placement, with Stewart eligible to return as early as Week 15. The Bengals will need to manage his return carefully if they want to protect their investment heading into the stretch run.
Promising Talent, Uncertain Future: Stewart’s Rookie Campaign Derailed
The timing could hardly be worse for Cincinnati. Stewart’s absence compounds an already serious problem: veteran defensive end Trey Hendrickson is also unavailable for the Steelers matchup, stripping the Bengals of two of their most impactful edge rushers simultaneously.
That forces Zac Taylor’s staff to lean heavily on Myles Murphy, Joseph Ossai, Cam Sample, and Cedric Johnson — a group with talent but limited experience carrying a full defensive load.
Pittsburgh’s offensive line has surrendered just 144 sack yards lost this season, making it one of the more durable fronts in the AFC, which means Cincinnati’s backup pass rushers will face a genuine test in generating pressure without their top options.
Injury Woes Mount for Bengals’ Defensive Front
Stewart arrived in Cincinnati with one of the highest ceilings in the 2025 draft class. A native of Miramar, Florida, he was ranked as the top edge rusher in the 2022 college football recruiting cycle by multiple major recruiting services before committing to Texas A&M.
His combination of length, athleticism, and motor drew consistent comparisons to high-level NFL starters throughout the pre-draft process.
The Bengals moved up their board to take him 17th overall, signaling their belief that he could anchor their defensive front for the next decade.
Two separate injuries in his first professional season have slowed that trajectory considerably, though it’s worth noting that rookie edge rushers frequently take time to develop even under ideal circumstances.
Overcoming Adversity: Bengals’ Resilience Faces Ultimate Test
Stewart and Hendrickson are just the latest names on a long injury list that has battered Cincinnati’s defensive line throughout 2025. DJ Reader and Josh Tupou have also missed time at various points, forcing the Bengals to cycle through their depth chart at an unsustainable rate.
The cumulative effect of those absences is a unit that has been asked to perform well above its depth level for extended stretches.
With divisional games against Pittsburgh and Baltimore still on the schedule — two of the AFC’s more physical offenses — the margin for error is shrinking fast.
How the Bengals manage their remaining healthy linemen over the next several weeks could determine whether they stay in the playoff conversation.
Cincinnati’s coaching staff has leaned on a next-man-up philosophy all season, and that resolve will face its stiffest test yet in the weeks ahead.
One statistical angle the Bengals can target: Pittsburgh has converted just 50 of 134 third-down attempts this season, a conversion rate that suggests the Steelers’ offense is vulnerable to sustained defensive pressure — even if that pressure comes from a reshuffled rotation.
If Murphy, Ossai, and Sample can generate consistent disruption in passing situations, Cincinnati’s defense can remain functional despite the personnel losses.
The Bengals’ playoff positioning depends heavily on winning divisional games, and finding a way to compete without two starting-caliber edge rushers will define the character of this roster.
From a roster construction standpoint, Stewart’s IR stint also raises questions about how the Bengals approach the back half of the season.
Cincinnati could look to the waiver wire or explore a short-term trade for defensive line help, though the trade deadline timeline complicates that option. More likely, the front office will trust the current depth group while monitoring Stewart’s recovery closely.
If he returns healthy in Week 15 with the Bengals still in playoff contention, his reintegration could provide a meaningful boost at exactly the right moment — functioning almost like a mid-season acquisition from within the roster.
Long-term, there is no reason to panic about Stewart’s development trajectory. Knee and ankle injuries in a rookie season are frustrating but not necessarily predictive of a shortened career.
The Bengals drafted him for what he can become over the next four to five years, not for what he produces in 2025.
The more pressing concern is surviving the immediate stretch without him and Hendrickson, keeping the team’s win total high enough to remain relevant when the playoff picture crystallizes in December. Stewart’s story this season is a setback — but it does not have to define his career.
