The Cincinnati Bengals and director of player personnel Duke Tobin decided to stand pat at the trade deadline after an embarrassing debacle involving the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Bengals tried to do business with Eagles vice president and general manager Howie Roseman by sending a 2027 sixth-round pick to the Eagles for edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie. The trade fell through after the Bengals discovered this would cost them a third-round comp pick, which they acquired by way of the departure of edge rusher Trey Hendrickson.
The story took hold nationally as another example of the Bengals front office ineptitude. Not only does the only team without a full-time general manager almost make a massive blunder, but they also fail to make any moves to bolster their roster for a potential playoff run.
A dose of embarrassment and the failure to make any finalized moves is about as poorly as the trade deadline could've went for Bengals fans that are of the belief that there are several holes on the roster that still need filling.
The disaster of a trade deadline looks bad in a vacuum, but zooming out is necessary to fully understand the AFC picture
While a glance at how the Bengals handled the trade deadline might represent an inept front office that didn't do anything to help their team as they gear up for a potential playoff run, it doesn't tell the full story.
Bengals fans look at what the other AFC contenders did ahead of the trade deadline and wonder why the Bengals didn't do the same. Most notably, the Jacksonville Jaguars, one of the two contenders who have already beaten the Bengals this season, added former Bengals safety Jessie Bates, along with defensive tackles Jordan Davis and Davon Godchaux.
The one thing that must be accounted for when determining how much front offices are doing to help their teams is the totality of the window in which front offices are allowed to help their teams. That window opens up in March, not just a few weeks before the trade deadline. From a financial standpoint, the Bengals have done more than any other team that is contending in the AFC.
Not including re-signings and fringe depth players, the Bengals are paying the most AAV (Annual Average Value) to acquisitions made this season. Between new acquisitions Dexter Lawrence, Boye Mafe, Bryan Cook and Jonathan Allen, the Bengals are paying just under $74 million in AAV.
Even after the recent trades made by the Jaguars, they are only paying $52.5 million to key acquisitions made this season. It is worth noting that the Jaguars have given up significantly more capital. The Bengals only gave up one first-round pick, which was a confirmed top-10 pick, while the Jaguars gave up a first-round pick, two second-round picks, a fifth-round pick and a sixth-round pick.
Does this mean that the Jaguars are doing more to support their team? Or does it mean that the Bengals decided to fix their problems before the season? This means they not only minimized the amount of draft capital required to fill the holes in their roster, but they are still spending more to do so.
The Kansas City Chiefs, another contender the Bengals will face this season, added one wide receiver at the deadline for a fourth-round pick and a fifth-round pick, making their AAV spent on key acquisitions this season just over $30 million. That is less than half of what the Bengals are spending.
The Buffalo Bills, the only contender that is spending close to what the Bengals are spending in the AFC, are spending just over $60 million after acquiring safety Amani Hooker at the trade deadline for a second-round pick and a fifth-round pick. Hooker added $13.5 million in AAV, but the Bengals are still $13 million ahead in spending.
Another AFC contender, the Denver Broncos, added a linebacker that the Bengals could've used in Daiyan Henley, for a fourth-round pick and a fifth-round pick. Still, they are spending just $46 million in AAV, nearly $30 million less than the Bengals.
...Except even in that case, the Broncos announced that they reneged on the trade for Henley.
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) November 12, 2026
The Broncos also spent more AAV and capital on wide receiver Jaylen Waddle ($28.3 million + a first-round pick and a third-round pick) than the Bengals spent on star defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence ($28 million + a first-round pick), who has just 337 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns this season. Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins has 335 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns in the last three games.
Perspective is important when evaluating the Bengals front office this season
One perspective might see the Bengals standing pat at the trade deadline as a more conservative approach that aligns with the "cheap" reputation that the Bengals have failed to shake. Another perspective might see this as the rest of the AFC overspending in capital to catch up to what the Bengals already did this offseason. When opposing teams know a team is desperate for a position as the deadline approaches, they know they can get a lot more out of that team.
Senior NFL Writer Daniel Popper graded the Davis trade as a D- for the Jaguars in an article on NBC Sports Philadelphia:
“This was a significant overpay for general manager James Gladstone and the Jaguars. Davis is a very good run defender, but he does not offer nearly enough as a pass rusher to command this type of return."
Another important aspect of the perspective that must be used when evaluating the front office is the perspective of the time after the few weeks leading up to the deadline. In the 2025 season, the Indianapolis Colts were sitting at 7-2, in prime position to make a run at the Super Bowl out of the AFC. They decided to trade two first-round picks to the New York Jets for cornerback Sauce Gardner at the deadline.
After going all-in on the 2025 season, quarterback Daniel Jones tore his Achilles and they finished the season 8-9. This directly led to them having a fire sale during the 2026 trade deadline, getting rid of franchise cornerstones like guard Quenton Nelson and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner.
While the failed trade does point to the fact that even the Bengals agree that there are deficiencies in the roster, an inactive trade deadline does not mean the front office is leaving the team hanging out to dry.
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