Eagles’ trade of edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie to the Bengals falls through
The Eagles remained active in the hours leading up to the trade deadline.
The Eagles’ trade of edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie to the Bengals in exchange for a 2027 sixth-round pick fell through less than two hours after the deal was confirmed by multiple outlets.
The Birds were set to ship the former Penn State and Temple product to Cincinnati in exchange for a 2027 sixth-round pick, a league source told The Inquirer. NFL Network and ESPN’s Ian Rapoport was first to report the move.
In addition to giving the Eagles the pick, the Bengals would have lost a 2027 third-round compensatory pick, according to Over the Cap contributor Nick Korte, based on the league’s formula for awarding compensatory selections.
The reversal of the deal keeps Ebiketie in Philly. The Eagles signed the former Penn State and Temple product to a one-year, $7.3 million contract, including $4.3 million fully guaranteed, in March.
» READ MORE: Live updates: Eagles NFL trade deadline news and moves
Ebiketie, a rotational edge rusher, has recorded 25 combined tackles and two quarterback hits in nine games this season.
Ebiketie played 37% of the Eagles’ defensive snaps in their last game vs. the Giants.
The Eagles started the trade deadline period with a bang on Monday with their deal to send Jordan Davis to the Jaguars for a first-round pick in 2027 and a second-round choice in 2029 but did not complete another move before Tuesday afternoon’s deadline.
The team still has nine scheduled selections in next year’s draft after the Ebiketie reversal, including two in the first round, one each in the second, third, fourth, and seventh, and three choices in the fifth round.
A crucial crossroads is here. The Eagles have reached the bye and, as timing would also have it, the NFL trade deadline, mired in their worst stretch of the Nick Sirianni era. There’s no doubt the franchise needs to course correct, but how? With who? Will players be on the move? Could coaches’ jobs be on the line? The Inquirer’s Jeff McLane and Olivia Reiner conduct an autopsy of the Eagles after their seventh straight loss — a 19-11 defeat to the New York Giants — and look at the big picture of an organization that has swiftly fallen far from its Super Bowl glory two years ago. Listen here.
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