Bengals 2025 Roster Breakdown: Barrett Carter going from pleasant NFL Draft surprise to four-down player

49 days remain until the Bengals' first game of the 2025 season, bringing No. 49 Barrett Carter to center stage. 

Barrett Carter

Age: 22
Year: 1st
Position: Linebacker
College: Clemson
Previous Teams: None
Jersey Number: 49

Carter enters his first season in the NFL and with the Bengals after being drafted 119th overall during the 2025 NFL Draft. He spent four years at Clemson, playing 52 games in all four years and starting 40 of them. He was a five-star recruit coming out of high school, where he was teammates with Bengals cornerback DJ Turner II, and was originally a running back before moving to linebacker as a sophomore.

Clemson named Carter a sophomore starter in 2022 and he eventually molded into one of the leaders of the defense. He earned First Team All-ACC honors as a senior in 2024 and led the Tigers in tackles. He only missed two games his entire college career due to injury.

Contract Details

Carter signed his four-year, $5,182,116 rookie contract in May. He's already earning a signing bonus of $982,116 this year and can earn a base salary of $840,000 this season. His potential cash earnings for this year amount to $1,822,116.

When adding on his signing bonus proration of $245,529, Carter's salary cap hit for the 2025 season is $1,085,529.