The Bengals’ trade deadline plans may end up waiting on Indianapolis.
Cincinnati has been linked to Colts running back Jonathan Taylor as Tuesday’s Nov. 10 deadline approaches, but the Colts may not be ready to move quickly. According to NFL insider Jordan Schultz, Indianapolis is expected to hold off on making any deal until after Week 9’s games unless someone comes in with an offer the team can’t ignore.
“The Colts have received plenty of calls on several players, including Jonathan Taylor, Josh Downs, Grover Stewart and others,” Schultz wrote on X. “But the belief around the league is that, barring an offer that blows them away, Indianapolis plans to wait until after Sunday’s game vs the Cowboys before revisiting the offers on the table and making the trades that make sense on Monday and Tuesday ahead of the deadline.”
That timeline matters for Cincinnati, which has been tied to Taylor and Downs over the past few weeks. The Bengals would love to get a deal done before the deadline, but if Indianapolis is waiting until after Sunday, Cincinnati may have to stay patient a little longer.
The appeal is obvious. Taylor would give the Bengals a major boost in the backfield alongside Joe Burrow, and the source material makes the case that the difference between an AFC Championship exit and a Super Bowl run could be Taylor in Cincinnati. If the Bengals come away with another big win this week and the running game still isn’t where it needs to be, that only strengthens the argument for going all in.
Downs is part of the conversation, too. Cincinnati could use a No. 3 receiver, and he’s viewed as a player who could fill that role. The ideal outcome, as described here, would be the Bengals sending draft picks to Indianapolis for both Taylor and Downs.
For now, Cincinnati is in Spain preparing for Sunday’s game against the Falcons in Madrid. Kickoff is set for 9:30 am ET, and the Bengals could still come away from the deadline with help on offense or defense.
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