The Cincinnati Bengals had one of the worst defenses in the league last season, but they retained someone on the unit who's easy to root for. They signed veteran cornerback Jalen Davis to a one-year extension on Friday, per the team's website.

Cornerbacks coach Chuck Burks offered kind words about Davis on Tuesday, per Geoff Hobson of the team's website.

"Most consistent player I've ever coached," he said. "I have 100% trust in him. He is truly a testament of what it means to have resilience."

Davis and Burks originally crossed paths with the Miami Dolphins in 2019. Burks was a coaching assistant with a focus on cornerbacks, and Davis was a part of the team's final roster cuts on Aug. 31 that year. The 5-foot-10, 186-pounder played three games for the Dolphins as an undrafted free agent in 2018.

The two joined forces again in 2022, when Burks arrived in Cincinnati as a cornerbacks coach. Davis had been with the team since 2020, when he totaled six games before making 15 appearances in 2021 and 13 in 2022.

Burks has been the Bengals' secondary/cornerbacks coach ever since, and Davis has been released and brought back multiple times. Cincinnati waived the Utah State alum in August 2024 and re-signed him to the practice squad before repeating the same process a year later. The organization promoted him to the active roster on Dec. 1, and he made seven appearances in 2025.

Davis has 47 career tackles with three forced fumbles, three passes defended, two sacks, one fumble recovery, and one interception over 62 games. The 30-year-old made the first three starts of his career in 2025 and played a similar amount of snaps as he did over his first five seasons with the squad.

Davis just experienced his most successful NFL season under his fourth campaign with Burks, and there's no reason why he can't continue an upward trajectory in 2026. The veteran coach has helped several other players break out, like when third-year starter Cam Taylor-Britt tied for fifth in the league with 16 passes defended in 2024. He also helped Cincinnati's secondary hold opposing quarterbacks to a league-low 58.9 completion percentage in 2022.

Unless the Bengals make several new additions at cornerback this offseason, Davis is once again poised to get playing time as part of a group including Dax Hill, DJ Turner II, and DJ Ivey. Taylor-Britt is scheduled to hit free agency.

Davis didn't have an easy road to get to this point, but he's with a coach who has been with him almost every step of the way. That shared history gives the two a foundation moving forward as they chase success.