After the Cincinnati Bengals initially traded for Philadelphia Eagles edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie, Jordan Schultz has reported that the deal will not go through. Schultz noted the nixing of the deal is not a failed physical, and it is not performance-related.
It is easy to draw the conclusion that the Bengals did not understand that Ebiketie signed this offseason as a compensatory free agent. By trading for the Eagles rusher, the team actually crossed off their own compensatory value that they were expected to get from losing Trey Hendrickson in free agency.
Nick Korte of Over the Cap pointed this out.
So, while they sent a sixth-round pick to the Eagles for the former second-round pick, the move cost them their chance of a third-round compensatory pick as well.
Cincinnati Bengals Trade for Philadelphia Eagles Edge Rusher Falls Through
It appears as though the Philadelphia Eagles were forgiving and did not force the trade to go through. The Bengals do not add their edge rusher they need, but they keep a valuable third-round pick, which they did not intend to lose.
Ebiketie was a quality depth option, but he had just two sacks last season and has zero sacks on ten pressures this year. Adding him as a third or fourth rusher and a rental option made sense. However, the team never thought it would impact their chances of losing a third-round pick.
The Bengals tried to add Ebiketie after losing Cashius Howell to the IR.
Bengals Have Need at Edge Rusher
The Bengals lost Howell, and they do not trust the depth behind Myles Murphy and Boye Mafe. Shemar Stewart is a former first-round pick but was inactive for two weeks. He has hardly played this season and has zero sacks in the first year and a half of his NFL career.
They also have Cedric Johnson as depth, but Johnson is mostly a special teams option. It made sense to swing for a depth option and a rental because Howell is expected to be back at some point this year. Still, this is now a rookie coming back from surgery that will sideline him for at least the next three weeks.
It would not be surprising if the Bengals pivoted and went after a different edge rusher. The team may pursue edge rushers before the 4 PM deadline. Now that we know they are interested in making a move, they could trade that sixth-round pick for another rental.
Why Bengals’ Arnold Ebiketie Trade Fell Apart Before Deadline