Bengals release veteran linebacker Rey Maualuga

Rey-Maualuga;-Cincinnati-Bengals

Linebacker Rey Maualuga has been released by the Cincinnati Bengals. (David Kohl/AP)

CINCINNATI — The Bengals have released eight-year veteran linebacker Rey Maualuga, saying they were moving to a younger group at the position.

Saturday’s move comes five days after they signed free-agent linebacker Kevin Minter to a one-year deal, an indication they were going in a different direction.

Maualuga was Cincinnati’s second-round pick in 2009. He has played in 114 games, starting 104 of them. Maualuga and Andy Dalton were named team captains in 2012.

Second-year linebacker Nick Vigil also is expected to get an expanded role next season in a defence that slipped in 2016, finishing 17th in yards allowed.

[relatedlinks]

When submitting content, please abide by our submission guidelines, and avoid posting profanity, personal attacks or harassment. Should you violate our submissions guidelines, we reserve the right to remove your comments and block your account. Sportsnet reserves the right to close a story’s comment section at any time.