Injury to Bengals’ $40 Million Defensive End Required ‘Significant’ Surgery

Getty Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Sam Hubbard.

The right ankle injury suffered by Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Sam Hubbard required “significant” offseason surgery, according to a report from ESPN’s Ben Baby.

“A right ankle issue that kept (Hubbard0 out of two games last season required significant offseason surgery,” Baby wrote on April 22. “On Monday, Hubbard said that he had a complete deltoid reconstruction in his ankle and a TightRope procedure to repair the ankle.”

Hubbard is in the last year of a 4-year, $40 million contract he signed in 2021. He missed five games in 2023 and his 5.0 sacks were his lowest total since 2020, when he missed three games with an elbow injury.

Hubbard told Baby there was no cartilage damage in the ankle but the impact on his play last season was evident. In the last five games of 2023, his pass-rush win rate was 49th out of 54 players in the NFL, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.

Bengals Battled Injuries in Key Spots in 2023

Hubbard wasn’t the only Cincinnati player to miss significant amounts of time with injuries in 2023. Quarterback Joe Burrow suffered a season-ending wrist injury that required surgery and forced him to miss the last seven games of the season.

Hubbard, when healthy, has been one of the Bengals’ more effective pass rushers. He’s also shown a flair for performing in clutch situations.

Hubbard was a third-round pick out of Ohio State in 2018 and has 35.5 career sacks through his first six seasons. In the 2021 postseason, Hubbard was arguably Cincinnati’s best defensive player on the way to a Super Bowl appearance with 22 tackles and 3.0 sacks in four games.

In 2022, the Bengals advanced to the AFC Championship Game for the second year in a row as Hubbard recorded 2 fumble recoveries, including a game-winning, 98-yard fumble return for a touchdown in a 24-17 win over the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Wild Card Round.

Bengals Could Add Elite Defensive Lineman in Draft

When Hubbard does return to the field for the Bengals he could be playing next to a first-round draft pick.

The Bengals are projected to take Texas defensive tackle Byron Murphy II with the No. 18 overall pick in the first round in the latest seven-round mock draft from ESPN’s Jordan Reid.

Murphy, 6-foot 1/2 and 297 pounds, ran the 40-yard dash in 4.87 seconds at the NFL combine and was a second-team Associated Press All-American in 2023 as the Longhorns made the College Football Playoff for the first time. He also scored two touchdowns on offense in jumbo goal line sets.

“Muscular ball of explosiveness with the tools and talent to become a productive three-down defender in the right scheme,” NFL analyst Lance Zierlein wrote. “Twitchy first-step quickness combined with flexion and power in his lower half create a recipe for disruption as a gap shooter or as a pass rusher.

“Murphy is powerful and well-schooled at taking on double-teams but lacks ideal mass and length for that role long-term. He’s successful at bypassing protection with sudden hands and quick feet, while his motor and passion create an activity level coaches will love. Forget the average physical traits and modest production and focus on his competitive spirit and disruptive qualities. Murphy is ascending and could become a successful nose tackle or 3-technique in an even front.”