Bengals coach addresses trade that fell through
CINCINNATI (AP) – Coach Zac Taylor addressed the trade deadline deal that fell through for the Cincinnati Bengals, speaking for “apologetic” director of player personnel Duke Tobin.
The Bengals were set to deal a sixth-round pick for Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Arnold Ebiketie on Tuesday. It turned out that if the Bengals would have made the move, they likely would have lost a 2027 third-round compensatory draft pick.
“As we got into it, obviously it was going to be a little more costly than we initially anticipated,” Taylor said. “(Tobin) wants to make clear Philly was a great trade partner. It was on our end, and that’s just the way things go. But we certainly have a ton of confidence in our front office and how they do things, and they’ve given us the players that have allowed us to be 6-2 right now and play at such a high level. So we’ll put that behind us and move forward, and just get excited for this game on Sunday.”
Taylor said he spent most of trade deadline day on Tuesday preparing for this weekend’s matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
“I probably took three minutes of my day yesterday away from watching tape,” Taylor said. “I’ve got a lot of faith in how those guys operate, and we’ll just move forward with it.”
While the Bengals did not make a trade, some of their biggest competitors in the AFC did.
“I really like where we’re at,” Taylor said about the Bengals. “I think Duke really likes where we’re at, and I think you talk to players in the locker room, they really like where we’re at. So this is a team with a lot of confidence.”
It will be a white-out game Sunday night at Paycor Stadium and the Steelers hope to be the eraser.
“Cincinnati’s in an incredible rhythm right now,” Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy acknowledged. “Obviously, the individuals speak for themselves. The talent, the production, their experience, I think you can see how the whole operation is going, so they’re playing at a very high level. … This is a challenge for us, but it’s a challenge we’re looking forward to.”