The Cincinnati Bengals made a deal to bolster their edge rush as the 2026 NFL trade deadline approached. Then, suddenly, they didn't.

The Bengals reneged on a trade that would have brought rotational pass rusher and former second round pick Arnold Ebiketie to the AFC in exchange for a sixth-round pick. Unlike other undone deals, this wasn't a case of a failed physical. It wasn't a coaching staff's sudden 180-degree turn on the young outside linebacker, even as he shuffles through the least efficient season of his career.

It was because that Ebiketie deal could have cost much more than a future sixth round pick.

As Over The Cap's Nick Korte points out, trading for Ebiketie would have cost the team an additional third rounder via the NFL's compensatory pick formula. That rewards teams who've lost big name free agents with extra selections at the ends of rounds three through seven in the following year's draft. Losing Trey Hendrickson to the Baltimore Ravens without adding as many compensatory free agents as had departed meant bringing in Ebiketie, even via trade, put what's likely to be a top 100 pick in the 2027 NFL Draft at risk.

Thus, the total cost of Ebiketie would have been the rough equivalent to the 95th overall pick. That's a hefty price tag for a player with zero sacks and whose 7.0 percent pressure rate is by far the lowest of his career.

Figuring that out after agreeing to the trade is a bad look. Losing out on two 2027 draft picks would have been even worse. Still, given the Eagles' trade-off this week, Ebiketie could still be on the move before the 4 p.m. ET deadline.