The Bengals are bringing in some help for their defensive front.
Per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Cincinnati is trading for Philadelphia edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie.
The Eagles will receive a 2027 sixth-round pick to complete the deal.
Ebiketie signed a one-year deal with Philadelphia in March. He’s recorded 25 total tackles this season with two QB hits in nine games.
A second-round pick in 2022, Ebiketie has recorded 16.5 sacks in his 76 career games.
Quarterback Josh Johnson’s long list of NFL teams is getting a little longer.
Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that the Cardinals will sign Johnson off of the Bengals’ practice squad. It will be Johnson’s first stint in Arizona, which makes them the 15th NFL team he has played for since entering the league with the Buccaneers in 2008.
The Cardinals are in need of quarterback health because Gardner Minshew is likely out for the season with an elbow injury. Rookie Carson Beck is the only other quarterback on the 53-man roster or practice squad.
Johnson did not appear in any games for the Bengals. He made two starts for Washington last season.
Bengals head coach Zac Taylor says nothing is happening in Cincinnati at the NFL trade deadline.
Asked today what he expects to happen between now and tomorrow at 4 p.m., Taylor said he doesn’t expect anything to happen.
“Nothing. That’s a bunch for everybody to talk about, but we’re good,” Taylor said.
Asked by another reporter whether there are positions he thinks his team still needs help at, Taylor said he likes the roster he has.
“No, I feel good about where we’re at,” Taylor said.
The Bengals are 6-2 and in the thick of the AFC playoff race, and Taylor has his team right where he wants to be.
On Sunday night, Bears quarterback Caleb Williams had four turnovers. On Sunday afternoon, Packers quarterback Jordan Love had four touchdowns and no turnovers.
As a result, Love’s odds to win the NFL MVP award have dramatically improved. Williams’s have taken a hit.
Josh Allen and Joe Burrow are currently the co-favorites, at +230. Brock Purdy is next, at +450. Then there’s Love, at +650.
Williams has fallen to 14-1, behind Trevor Lawrence (9-1).
The odds will continue to shift. Monday night’s game could impact Allen’s number. But the players at the top of the list have earned their spot over the course of a season. And Love has been surging.
He has multiple touchdowns in every game, giving him the second-longest streak to start a season in franchise history, behind only Aaron Rodgers (who did it for 15 games in a row in his initial MVP season of 2011).
And Love is engineering one of the most downfield passing games in the league. On Sunday, he completed 23 of 29 passes for 372 yards. That translates to an eye-popping if not mind-blowing average of 12.82 yards per attempt.
So, yes, Love is separating himself from the pack. Can he keep it going? The next opportunity comes on Sunday, when the Minnesota defense arrives at Lambeau Field with designs on completing a sweep of the Packers.
The Bengals extended their winning streak to four games against the Falcons in Madrid on Sunday and they continued to use their aerial attack to fuel their success.
Joe Burrow was 24-of-29 for 271 yards and three touchdowns in the 34-17 win and he has thrown for 1,215 yards and 16 touchdowns over the last four games. Wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins have been the main targets for Burrow and Higgins was asked after Sunday’s win if this is the best he’s ever seen Burrow play.
“No. I know he got another step in him, for sure,” Higgins said, via a transcript from the team.
Higgins said the same for the offense as a whole because there are things they could improve to find their “best form.” That prospect should be a chilling one for opposing defensive players and coaches as they try to draw up ways to slow down a red-hot Bengals offense.
Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase had a sensational first half as the Bengals jumped out to an early lead that they never relinquished, beating the Falcons 34-17 Sunday in Madrid.
The NFL’s early-morning kickoffs in Europe always draw mixed reviews from American fans, but this game saw some entertaining play from some of the NFL’s best offensive playmakers, particularly Chase and Falcons running back Bijan Robinson.
Chase caught 10 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown, doing almost all if it within the first 25 minutes of the game. In the second half, the Bengals didn’t need to throw to Chase much, and running backs Chase Brown and Samaje Perine were running out the clock for much of the fourth quarter. Tee Higgins was a smaller part of the offense, catching just five passes for 32 yards, but Higgins did score two touchdowns.
Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow completed 24 of 29 passes for 271 yards, with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Burrow also ran for a touchdown on a quarterback sneak.
Robinson was his usual excellent self, carrying 19 times for 100 yards and a touchdown and also leading the Falcons with six catches. But after a strong first drive, Michael Penix and the Falcons’ passing game couldn’t do much. Penix finished with just 162 passing yards, and his late interception sealed the loss.
The win improves the Bengals’ record to 6-2, and they’re in great shape in the AFC playoff race. The Falcons fall to 3-6.
Falcons running back Bijan Robinson is having a big game against the Bengals in Madrid.
With six minutes left in the third quarter, Robinson has 80 rushing yards and 50 receiving yards, and his one-yard touchdown run in the third quarter brought the Falcons to within one score as they trail the Bengals 24-17.
Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase has been the story of the game so far, but Robinson is also playing very well, as two of the league’s best offensive playmakers are putting on a show for an international audience.
As is so often the case with international games played on soccer fields, the footing has been a concern. Several Falcons reportedly changed their cleats to get better traction, and Chase and Joe burrow were seen before the game taking a close look at what appeared to be an uneven part of the playing surface.
But the footing hasn’t slowed down Robinson or Chase.
Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase is having an eye-popping first half today in Madrid.
Chase caught eight passes for 142 yards and a touchdown in the first 25 minutes of play against the Falcons, helping the Bengals take a 21-10 lead over the Falcons.
It’s the most receiving yards that Chase has ever had in the first half of a game in his career.
The rest of the Bengals’ offense hasn’t done anything special, with a total of 91 yards on any play that isn’t a pass to Chase, but they haven’t needed to. Chase is taking over the game.
It’s going to be a long flight home from Spain for the Falcons’ defense if they can’t find a way to stop Chase from running free through their secondary.
The Bengals and Falcons are putting on a show for the fans in Madrid.
In the NFL’s showcase in Spain, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow hit wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase for a 47-yard touchdown to tie the score 7-7 in the first quarter.
Both teams scored on their opening possessions, the Falcons on a seven-play, 80-yard drive and the Bengals on a five-play, 75-yard drive.
It’s been an entertaining first six minutes of football at Bernabéu Stadium.
The Falcons’ offense made it look easy against the Bengals’ defense on today’s first drive in Madrid.
Bijan Robinson ran the ball three times for 42 yards, Michael Penix completed all three of his passes, and the Bengals committed two penalties on a seven-play, 80-yard drive that ended with a Penix one-yard touchdown pass to Charlie Woerner. It was Woerner’s first career touchdown.
The extra point made it 7-0 Falcons, in a game that’s a big one for both teams, who are in competitive division races.
The Bengals have struggled early in games recently, frequently falling behind in the first quarter and then coming back and winning. They’re going to need to do that again.
