He once said, “I wouldn’t leave my guys hanging.” And the thing about Sam Hubbard is – he never did. Not with a torn hamstring. Not with a shredded ankle. And not even in a meaningless Week 18 game with nothing but bruises and pride on the line. He kept showing up, taping himself together like a war medic on the edge of a playoff hunt. If leadership had a face in Cincinnati, it wore No. 94.
Before the Joe Burrow-led culture reset. The Super Bowl run. The Fumble in the Jungle became a Moeller High School workout tradition. Sam Hubbard was the hometown kid with a chip on his shoulder and skyline chili in his veins. The Cincinnati Kid who once outran the entire Ravens offense in the playoffs and still had the breath to flex in the end zone? Yeah. He was still that guy, just limping a little more quietly these days. And yet, here we are. Retirement ink barely dry. And he’s already teasing a comeback.
Sam Hubbard might have walked into Jungle to the Hall V without pads, cleats, or a playbook – but he still carried the weight of the locker room with him. When it comes to the Cincinnati Bengals, there’s no such thing as a ‘former’ Bengal for this hometown kid. So when James Rapien set the stage with a cheeky scenario. “The Bengals call in November,” he said, teasing. “And they’re like, Sam, Sam, we need you to suit up. We need you to suit up.” You’d expect a smile. Maybe a deflection. Hubbard gave both, but then kept going. “Hey, you guys are ready to make a run,” he began, and the crowd went crazy. He had to stop them, “I’ll, you know – don’t, don’t, don’t. I didn’t even say anything.” He wasn’t confirming anything, but he wasn’t exactly shutting the door either.
“I was messing with Ben,” he continued, referring to teammate Ben Baby. “And I said, all right, maybe practice swap, no elevation. Dinner ring, we all get to go home happy or not.” Practice squad. No elevation. Just vibes – and maybe a Super Bowl ring as a bonus souvenir? That’s the kind of unselfish, glue-guy mindset the Bengals have leaned on for years. And even as Sam Hubbard jokes about sitting on the sidelines at 205 pounds, there’s an undertone that’s hard to miss. “No, I mean, if you guys are going to go out to Super Bowl, and I’m going to get a call, even if I’m 205 pounds or something. I’ll give you something.” That’s not just a punchline. That’s a promise wrapped in humility.
.@Sam_Hubbard_ entertains the idea of getting a call from the Bengals late in the season: “If you guys are going to the Super Bowl, and I get a call, even if I’m 205 lbs or something… I’ll hold field goals for Evan” #junglejam2025 @JamesRapien @bengaljims_BTR pic.twitter.com/b7TnZ635H9
— Andrew Fo 𝕏 Miller (@AndrewFoxMiller) July 20, 2025
The back-and-forth didn’t stop there. Rapien, clearly enjoying the hypothetical comeback tour, threw out another scenario: “Sam, come over at the safety. High school boys.” To which Hubbard, without skipping a beat, replied: “I’ll hold field goals for Evan when we get home.” Self-deprecating. Loyal. All-in. That’s been Sam Hubbard since day one.
All this comes after he officially retired on Instagram with a message that sounded like a full stop: “In my heart, I know that I gave this game, this team, and this city everything that I had.” And he did. More than fans can quantify. Hubbard wasn’t just the pulse of the Bengals’ defense. He was the heartbeat of the locker room. While Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase got the billboards, Sam Hubbard set the culture. Played through injuries. Led by example.
In seven seasons, he logged 427 tackles, 61 TFLs, 42.5 sacks, and two fumble returns – including that playoff moment against Baltimore. What makes this ‘maybe return’ nugget so juicy is that it doesn’t feel like a desperate ploy for attention. It’s Sam being The Cincinnati Kid everyone loves. It’s why even in reflecting on the end, Hubbard didn’t just talk about legacy – he spoke of the people who helped forge it.
Sam Hubbard credits Trey Hendrickson for his edge
When Sam Hubbard spoke about Trey Hendrickson, it wasn’t just respect – it was revelation. “Trey eats perfectly, sleeps perfectly, constantly works on his game, is obsessed with football,” Hubbard said plainly on the Pro Football Focus with Cris Collinsworth. It wasn’t about stats or sack totals. It was about how Trey showed up every day, like it was a playoff rep. “You do that for, what is it, eight years straight, it gets old. I mean, not for him,” Hubbard added, reflecting on the kind of grind that shaped both their careers.
Even now, post-retirement, Hubbard’s still chasing sweat with him. “He reached out to me, wanted a training partner while he’s in town,” he said, laughing a little. “I was like, ‘Hey, you know, I still gotta stay healthy, so let’s get after it.’” And just like that, they were back to the old ways – one gearing up for another double-digit sack campaign, the other, maybe just maybe, wondering if the Bengals might give him one more reason to lace up again.
Because for all the speeches and sendoffs, Sam Hubbard’s connection to this team – and guys like Trey – runs deeper than contracts or depth charts. It’s built on years of sweat, trust, and shared wars in the trenches. And while he’s not planning a comeback for the Bengals, he admitted, he’d always consider picking up the phone.
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