January 1, Bengals Coach Owns Up After Trade Deal Collapses

Wyatt’s Take

• Bengals coach Zac Taylor took responsibility when a planned trade for edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie fell apart before Tuesday’s deadline.
• Team officials underestimated the extra cost tied to a lost compensatory pick from free agency losses like Trey Hendrickson.
• Taylor says the front office handled the setback and the team is moving forward with focus on the next game.

Bengals head coach Zac Taylor admitted Cincinnati deserves the blame after a last-minute trade for Philadelphia Eagles edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie collapsed before the Tuesday deadline.

Taylor read a prepared statement from director of football operations Duke Tobin on Wednesday, telling reporters the team had underestimated what it would cost to replace Cashius Howell.

“We did make an effort to put some depth in there in place of Cashius [Howell]. As we got into it, obviously it was going to be a little more costly than we initially anticipated. He’s really apologetic about it and wants to make clear [that] Philly was a great trade partner. It was on our end.”

“Duke was very explicit with me when he came and spoke to me about how he wanted this portrayed,” Taylor added. “I’m not comfortable doing it, but I’m going to do what he asked.”

An initial report said the Bengals and Eagles had agreed to swap a sixth-round pick for Ebiketie. The deal began to unravel when Cincinnati learned it would also lose a compensatory draft pick awarded after losing more free agents than it signed.

Taylor said he did not press Tobin for extra details because the decision was already made.

“I didn’t even ask the question,” Taylor noted. “It doesn’t really matter to me. It probably took three minutes of my day yesterday away from watching tape. Got a lot of faith in how [the front office] operates and we’ll just move forward with it.”

The Bengals enter Week 10 on a four-game win streak after beating the Atlanta Falcons in the NFL’s first game in Madrid on Sunday. Cincinnati hosts the Pittsburgh Steelers next.

Wyatt Matters

Hardworking fans expect teams to own their mistakes the same way everyday Americans own theirs at the dinner table. When coaches step up, admit fault, and keep grinding, it shows the kind of accountability that builds real winning cultures in sports and in life.