Former Chiefs safety Bryan Cook to sign with AFC rival Bengals, per report
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Bryan Cook plans to sign a three-year, $40M-plus deal with the Bengals.
- Cook’s exit appears to break up the Chiefs’ 2022 'Fab Five' secondary core.
- Chiefs must address three departing secondary starters ahead of the upcoming draft.
The Kansas City Chiefs continue to lose key members of their secondary.
Safety Bryan Cook plans to sign with the Cincinnati Bengals when the new league year begins Wednesday, according to an NFL Network report citing his agency, LIFT Sports Management.
Cook, 26, entered the league with the Chiefs out of the University of Cincinnati as a second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. The Ohio native returns home on a reported three-year deal worth more than $40 million.
With Cook’s departure, it appears the “Fab Five” — a nickname coined by Chiefs defensive backs coach Dave Merritt for the five defensive backs drafted in 2022 — could be broken up in one free agency period. Cornerbacks Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson are now members of the Los Angeles Rams, while Nazeeh Johnson and Joshua Williams remain unrestricted free agents.
In 47 appearances over four seasons with the Chiefs, Cook registered 238 tackles, 15 passes defensed and three interceptions. Along with the other members of the “Fab Five,” Cook won back-to-back Super Bowl titles with Kansas City in the 2022 and 2023 seasons.
Losing three starters in the secondary is something the Chiefs will have to address, especially at safety, with only Chamarri Conner, Jaden Hicks, Chris Roland-Wallace and Tanner McCalister (reserve/futures deal) tied to Kansas City for the 2026 season.
The Chiefs are projected to make nine selections, including two in the first round, in next month’s NFL Draft.
