Within the first hour of the NFL legal tampering period, which opened at noon Monday, Ossai agreed to a three-year, $36 million deal with the Jets. The deal includes $22.5 million fully guaranteed, according to Athletes First agent David Mulugheta in a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Now the Bengals are down two of their top pass rushers with Trey Hendrickson saying goodbye to Cincinnati last week ahead of free agency and now Ossai officially departing.
Ossai had signed a one-year, $7 million “prove it” deal with the Bengals last offseason after recording all five of his sacks in the final seven games of 2024, and he built off that strong finish. The 2021 third-round draft pick produced a career-high 43 pressures with 5.0 sacks in his fifth season (fourth on the field), despite missing the last three games due to an ankle injury.
The Texas product battled injuries early in his career and had just 4.5 sacks in his first two seasons on the field. He ends his time with the Bengals having played 61 games with 12 starts and producing 14.5 sacks, 116 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, three forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries and 44 quarterback hits.
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