Agent: Bengals signing veteran defensive end

Credit: Julio Cortez

Credit: Julio Cortez

The Cincinnati Bengals are signing former Tennessee Titans linebacker/defensive end Tarell Basham, according to his agent.

Priority Sports agent Kenny Zuckerman announced on Twitter on Friday that Bashman has agreed to terms on a contract with the Bengals. Bashman, a product of Ohio University, is “back home,” Zuckerman posted along with a graphic.

Basham originally was a third-round draft pick of the Indianapolis Colts in 2017 and appeared in 15 games as a rookie but was waived in October 2018 and picked up by the New York Jets the next day. He played 10 games that season, with one start, for the Jets and appeared in all 32 regular-season games in 2019 and 2020, including 11 starts, before signing with the Dallas Cowboys in 2021 and playing 17 games with six starts.

After a stint on injured reserve early last season, he ended up waived by Dallas and signed a week later with the Titans. He played five games for Tennessee and was a free agent this offseason.

During his six-year career, he’s totaled 82 games with 18 starts.

Basham, who primarily played defensive end his first five seasons in the NFL, could provide some depth on the edge for the Bengals, where they were relying on a number of young players to fill roles in a rotation behind Sam Hubbard and Trey Hendrickson.

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