When the Cincinnati Bengals walked off the gridiron last season, they knew things needed to change. While their playoff hopes were yet to end—depending on the Broncos-Chiefs clash result the following day—the numbers still stung. The 9-8 record and missed playoffs for two consecutive seasons were nothing but a painful reminder that despite individual excellence in Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase, collectively the team needed work. Perhaps that explains why the front office has been up and running, already making changes to where it matters.

On Friday, the team made some ambitious announcements to the personnel department around Director of Player Personnel, Duke Tobin: Three longtime internal fixtures, Steven Radicevic, Mike Potts, and Trey Brown, had been promoted to assistant general manager roles, a first in franchise history. Why does it matter? These are critical voices now with formal titles, and that changes how decisions are made.

Radicevic, who first joined the Bengals in 2012, has worn many hats, starting as an Undergraduate coach and Assistant Director of Operations at UCLA, his alma mater, before joining the Bengals’ scouting team. A UCLA grad with a psychology background, he’s been the team’s lead negotiator on some of their most high-stakes extensions, including the historic $275 million deal for Joe Burrow and the multi-year contracts for Logan Wilson and Trey Hendrickson.

Mike Potts, on the other hand, enters his 11th season with Cincinnati, currently working as Bengals’ College Scouting Director. A former James Madison quarterback, Potts oversees all aspects of the college draft process. He has been instrumental in helping Cincinnati land foundational pieces in recent years, including Ja’Marr Chase, Dax Hill, Cam Taylor-Britt, and even value picks like DJ Turner II and Andrei Iosivas.

Then there’s Trey Brown, a bit of a wildcard, and possibly the most intriguing of the three. A former NFL cornerback turned front office riser, Brown has built one of the more unconventional résumés in the league. He worked at Philadelphia’s front office during their Super Bowl LII run as a Director of college scouting, had a stint with the Patriots as a scouting assistant, and even led player personnel for the XFL’s St. Louis Battlehawks. Brown joined Cincinnati in 2021 and has become a rising force in pro scouting. Now wonder Tobin seems glad.

“Steve, Mike and Trey work in all areas of the club and assist me in every aspect. They’re highly capable. They’re impactful in all areas of personnel. We felt like this title fit their role with us,” he said as per a press release.

The decision comes at a time when the contract holdout is causing them concern.

Mike Brown & Co. stuck in a tense situation

The Bengals’ Pro Bowl pass rusher has become the most visible face of a growing standoff inside Cincinnati’s locker room, as three players, Hendrickson, rookie defensive lineman Shemar Stewart, and a still-unsigned second-round pick LB Demetrius Knight, continue to hold out. What started as individual negotiations has taken on a new tone, one of quiet defiance, and has turned collective.

Trey Hendrickson has been the most vocal and high-impact absconder. With one year and $16 million remaining on his current deal, he’s flat-out refused to play without a new extension. After garnering 17.5 sacks in each of the past two seasons, his camp is reportedly seeking a roughly 3-year, $115.5 million package (about $100 million guaranteed). Though the team reportedly offered as much as $28 million per year, Hendrickson has turned it down.

Moreover, he’s currently racking up fines, over $100,000 already, for skipping minicamp. On the other hand, Shemar Stewart’s 4-year, roughly $18.9 million fully guaranteed rookie package (including a $10.4 million signing bonus) aligns with the 2025 slotting, but the dispute isn’t about dollars. It’s about language. Cincinnati wants void clauses that could eliminate future guarantees for issues like ejections, suspensions, or misconduct.

But Stewart’s camp won’t budge. As he put it, “Y’all just want to win arguments instead of winning more games.” This replicates a pattern last seen in 2018 with Roquan Smith’s holdout, and hence, Stewart’s resistance has parallels. The question now is, he playing ball on the field, or going back to Texas A&M or even restarting in the 2026 draft?

And there’s still a second-round rookie, Demetrius Knight Jr., who reportedly signed a participation waiver to attend camp but declined to ink his full rookie deal. That makes three simultaneous holdouts on one team. According to Adam Schefter, no other NFL roster is currently in this predicament. It’s a tense moment, both in Cincinnati’s locker room and across the league.