Cashius Howell

Cashius Howell (born April 16, 2003) is an American professional football defensive end for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas A&M Aggies and Bowling Green Falcons. Howell received unanimous All-American honors for his performance during the 2025 season. He was selected by the Bengals in the second round of the 2026 NFL draft.

Early life Howell was born on April 16, 2003 in Kansas City, Missouri. He attended Rockhurst High School in Kansas City. During his high school career, he had 150 tackles, including 21 sacks. He committed to Bowling Green State University to play college football.

College career Bowling Green On July 1, 2021, Howell enrolled at Bowling Green State University. He made his collegiate debut against Murray State during the 2021 season. In 2023, Howell led the Mid-American Conference (MAC) with 9.5 sacks. He was named 2023 Third-team All-MAC. Over 30 games for Bowling Green, Howell had 56 tackles and 11.5 sacks.

On December 23, 2023, Howell entered the transfer portal.

Texas A&M On January 8, 2024, he transferred to Texas A&M University. Howell made his Aggies debut against Notre Dame in the season opener, where he recorded two tackles. Howell's first Aggies sack came in a victory against Florida. In the Las Vegas Bowl against USC, Howell made his first Aggies start. Against the Trojans, Howell recorded a sack and his first career interception. On the season, he played in 13 games with one start and had 40 tackles, four sacks and one interception.

In week 2 of the 2025 season, Howell sacked Utah State's quarterback Bryson Barnes on three consecutive plays. For his performance, he was named Southeastern Conference (SEC) defensive player of the week. In week 5 against Mississippi State, Howell recorded three sacks and a pass deflection in the victory. Howell became the first Aggie to record multiple three sack games in a single season since Von Miller in 2009. For his performance, he was named defensive player of the week. He also received unanimous All-American honors, becoming the 11th Texas A&M player to receive them.

Statistics Year Team Games Tackles Fumbles Interceptions GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck FF FR Yds TD Int Yds TD PD 2021 Bowling Green 4 0 6 5 1 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2022 Bowling Green 13 0 22 6 16 2.0 0 1 7 0 0 0 0 1 2023 Bowling Green 13 11 28 16 12 9.5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2024 Texas A&M 13 1 40 26 14 4.0 1 0 0 0 1 6 0 7 2025 Texas A&M 12 12 29 16 10 11.5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 Career 55 24 125 72 53 27.0 3 1 7 0 1 6 0 15

Professional career

Howell was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the second round, with the 41st overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft.