The Cincinnati Bengals aren’t typically very active when it comes to trading for players or trading away their own. It’s never been something Mike Brown and the Blackburn family have ever really embraced, even when they had the opportunity to add to a potential championship roster or shed players on their way out to accrue picks when things aren’t going well.
This season, the Bengals could have gone either way. Sitting at 3-6, it would have made sense to trade away an asset like Trey Hendrickson. It also could have made sense if the Bengals decided to trade for an edge rusher to try to make an improbable run at the postseason when they come out of their bye week.
Here are some of the winners and losers from the Bengals now that the trade deadline has come and gone.
Winners
Logan Wilson: It’s not often a player not named Carson Palmer requests a trade from the Bengals’ front office, and it gets honored. Wilson woke up on November 4 with a 3-6 record after being benched and went to bed with a 3-5-1 record, which isn’t a huge improvement, but the Cowboy gets a fresh start on the Cowboys. Good for him, and good luck to him.
Barrett Carter: It wasn’t surprising when Wilson requested a trade, considering he was benched for Carter, who is a rookie. Now the starting linebacker role next to Demetrius Knight Jr. is his and his alone. It’s hard to find a better coach than experience, and Carter is going to get plenty of that.
Opposing Quarterbacks: Had the Bengals been bound and determined to fix their defense for a run in the back half of the season, one thing they could have done was trade for another pass rusher. Al Golden’s defense, outside of Trey Hendrickson, has been awful when it comes to rushing the passer, and a part of the reason other teams are able to score a ton of points against Cincinnati is because opposing quarterbacks can sit in the pocket until a receiver gets open. That will continue.
Oren Burks/Shaka Heyward: Carter isn’t the only beneficiary of Wilson’s departure. Both Burks and Heyward were buried behind Carter, Knight, and Wilson on the depth chart. They may not be starting now, but Golden could turn to them if he wants to give one of his starters a breather, or if one gets hurt.
Zac Taylor: The trade deadline is the unofficial halfway point of the season, and the 3-6 Bengals are looking like they’re likely going to miss the playoffs for the third season in a row. You would have thought Taylor’s ice would have been thin after he allowed the league’s most explosive offense to miss the playoffs, but now that his hand-picked defensive coordinator is obviously not working out, his job security seems as strong as ever. Remember, Marvin Lewis was the Bengals’ head coach for 16 years.
Can you imagine having that kind of job security?
Losers
Trey Hendrickson: Here’s the biggest loser on this list. The best thing the Bengals could have done, for themselves and for Hendrickson, would have been to trade him. He’s on the wrong side of 30, and the Bengals may not get what they want, but something is better than nothing. The Bengals could be setting themselves up to tag Hendrickson in ‘26, in which case, he’d be playing on a one-year deal again.
Bengals fans: No major shakeups. No big changes. No sign that the Bengals’ front office has any plans to do anything differently than they’ve done it since Mike Brown took over. Nothing changes if nothing changes, and Bengals fans just need to remember who they’re rooting for.
Jermaine Burton: This may seem like a stretch, but hear me out. Burton’s first couple of seasons in the NFL haven’t been good, and the best thing he could hope for might be a change of scenery. Burton obviously has talent, but, considering the off-field issues and the lack of production, it’s likely he’ll just continue to waste away as a healthy scratch on game days.
Who are your winners and losers?
See More:
