'Nefarious' Concern Addressed by NFL Insider After Bengals Called Off Trade with Eagles for Ebiketie

The Cincinnati Bengals were set to acquire defensive end Arnold Ebiketie from the Philadelphia Eagles ahead of Tuesday's trade deadline, but ultimately called the deal off before it was finalized.

The Bengals decided not to go through with the deal after realizing that they could lose a compensatory draft pick by acquiring Ebiketie. Tom Pelissero of The Ringer explained what Cincinnati's "mistake" was in the deal:

"The Bengals' mistake was agreeing to acquire Ebiketie for a 2027 sixth-round pick before checking with the NFL Management Council about how he would be counted. Once the deal was in place, the Bengals did call the league and got clarity: Because of one of many quirks in the formula, trading for Ebiketie—who signed a one-year, $4.3 million deal with the Eagles in March—would cause him to count as a free agent gain for both the Eagles and the Bengals, even though he's on a minimum salary for the rest of the season."

The process for determining compensatory picks is a complex one that Pelissero noted even the league office has gotten wrong in the past. Essentially, if a team gains fewer qualifying unrestricted free agents than it loses, it will receive compensatory picks.

While Pelissero noted that neither team acted "nefariously" while making the deal, "the blame is on the Bengals for agreeing first and asking questions later."

"Philly was a great trade partner," Bengals head coach Zac Taylor told reporters. "It was on our end."