Bengals to release QB Trevor Siemian

As Joe Burrow works his way back from the calf strain he suffered early in training camp, the Bengals are moving their more experienced QB2 option off their roster. Trevor Siemian will be cut, per ProFootballNetwork.com’s Jay Morrison.

The well-traveled backup, whom Cincinnati signed midway through the offseason, lost the job to Jake Browning. Both the Bears and Bengals have cut Siemian, 31, this year. While the Bengals could conceivably circle back once they set their roster or reunite with Siemian on a practice squad agreement, the defending AFC North champions are rolling with a Burrow-Browning depth chart for the time being.

When Burrow went down, Zac Taylor said the superstar QB would be out “several weeks.” The former No. 1 overall pick has rehabbed to the point it is considered likely he will be back in time to start the season. This is a similar role for the ex-LSU record-setting passer, who missed the preseason in 2021 due to ACL rehab and 2022 because of an appendectomy. Burrow has piloted the Bengals to the past two AFC championship games and has not missed regular-season time due to injury since his rookie-year knee setback in 2020.

The Bengals, however, let their primary Burrow backup — Brandon Allen — sign with the 49ers this offseason. They added Siemian on that May day. Allen does not look like he will be moved off the 49ers’ 53-man roster, with San Francisco dealing Trey Lance to Dallas. With Allen unlikely to come back to the Bengals — a rumored scenario prior to the Lance trade — the team may be on the hunt for a better backup. Browning has never taken a regular-season snap.

Siemian becoming a surprise starter for a defending Super Bowl champion back in 2016 made him a household name of sorts early in his career. The former seventh-round pick has bounced around since his two-year run as Peyton Manning‘s Broncos successor. Siemian has since been with the Vikings, Jets, Titans, Saints and Bears. The Northwestern alum could catch on with an eighth team soon.