Chicago Bears and Cincinnati Bengals players: who played for both

Who played for both the Bears and Bengals?

48 players were on both the Chicago Bears and the Cincinnati Bengals rosters between 1960 and 2026, including Andy Dalton, Jerry Fontenot, Clyde Simmons and Mike Nugent. 20 of them were with the Bears first and 26 with the Bengals first; 2 joined both in the same season.

Did you know?

  • Bill Staley is the earliest on this list to complete the pair: Bengals first, then the Bears from 1970.
  • Nick McCloud is the most recent: Bengals first, then the Bears from 2025.
  • Andy Dalton spent the most seasons across the two: 1 with the Bears and 9 with the Bengals.
  • 5 of them had two or more separate spells with one of the teams, such as Shane Matthews.
  • Most common positions on this list: DL (13), QB (9), LB (6), OL (4).

How many can you name?

Name players who were on both the Bears and the Bengals. The surname is enough. 0 / 48

All 48 players, most seasons first

Seasons on each roster (1960–2026). A gap of a season or more starts a new spell.
PlayerPosBearsBengals
Andy DaltonQB20212011–2019
Jerry FontenotC1989–19962004
Clyde SimmonsDL1999–20001998
Mike NugentK20172010–2016
Bryan RobinsonDE1998–20032005–2007
Jeff BlakeQB20051994–1999
Shane MatthewsQB1993–1996, 1999–20012003
Mike PennelDL20222025
Riley ReiffOL20222021
Andrew BillingsDL2023–20252016–2019
Rufus MayesOL19691970–1978
Andre CollinsLB19981995–1997
Jason CampbellQB20122014
Lucas PatrickOL2022–20232025
Matt BarkleyQB20162018
Andy RiceDL1972–19731968–1969
Damion SquareDL20212021
Jay LeeuwenburgOL1992–19951999
LaRoy ReynoldsLB20152019
Margus HuntDL20212013–2016, 2020
Tom CarterDB1997–19991999–2001
Trent TaylorWR20232021–2022
Carl PowellDE20012003–2005
Cedric BensonRB2005–20072008–2011
Ricardo McDonaldLB1998–19991992–1997
Frank CornishDL1966–19691970
Khalid KareemDL20232020–2022
Royce BerryDL19761969–1974
Tank JohnsonDT2004–20062009–2010
Virgil CarterQB1968–1969, 1975–19761970–1972
Jordan PalmerQB20132008–2010
Nick McCloudDB2025–20262021
Bill StaleyDL1970–19721968–1969
Khalil HerbertRB2021–20242024
Mike CobbTE1978–19811977
Andrew BrownDL20222019–2020
Clay PickeringWR19861984–1985
Dane SanzenbacherWR2011–20122012–2014
Chris DevlinLB19781975–1976, 1978
Harry GunnerDL19701968–1969
John NeidertLB19701968
Larry ElyLB19751970–1971
Marty AmslerDL1967, 19691970
Ben BennettQB19881987
Craig KrenzelQB20042005
Richard FainDB19921991
Vaughn LusbyDB19801979
Kirk BartonT20082008

From the nflverse roster files (CC BY 4.0), refreshed 2026-10-06. A season counts when the player was on the roster: from 2002 on, at least one regular-season or playoff week as active, injured reserve or inactive (practice squad alone does not count); 1960–2001 use the season rosters.

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More “played for both” lists

Chicago Bears and…

Cardinals 107Lions 101Commanders 100Falcons 98Saints 98Dolphins 95Rams 94Browns 89Cowboys 89Eagles 88

Cincinnati Bengals and…

Cardinals 84Browns 74Commanders 72Buccaneers 7149ers 67Chargers 66Jets 65Raiders 64Patriots 64Dolphins 61

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Questions

How many players have played for both the Chicago Bears and the Cincinnati Bengals?

48 in the nflverse roster files from 1960 to 2026, including Andy Dalton, Jerry Fontenot, Clyde Simmons and Mike Nugent. Players whose time with one of the teams was practice squad only, or before 1960, are not counted.

Who was the first player on this list to play for both?

Bill Staley: Cincinnati Bengals first, then the Chicago Bears from 1970.

Who has played for both recently?

Mike Pennel, Andrew Billings, Lucas Patrick and Nick McCloud, with a season on one of the two rosters in 2025 or 2026.

Does a player count if the team has moved or changed its name?

Yes. Seasons count for today's franchise, the way the league keeps team history. Neither of these teams has moved since 1960.

Rosters from nflverse (CC BY 4.0). Team logos are trademarks of their respective teams (logos via TheSportsDB). Independent and not affiliated with the NFL or any team. Credits