Bengals cap space, depth chart will prevent most trades for now

Don’t look for the Cincinnati Bengals to pull off another big trade right now.

The Bengals currently have less than $10 million in free cap space, on paper, before doing something like a Joe Burrow contract restructure. While thinking ahead, they just turned down the fifth-year option on Myles Murphy.

As we broke down, turning down Murphy’s fifth year is a sign of progress.

Even so, the Bengals will continue to surface often as an option for free agents and trades. Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox recently provided a new example, listing the Bengals as a trade fit for New York Giants edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux.

Knox tabs that trade cost as a fourth-round pick: “The 2022 first-round pick has flashed a high ceiling (11.5 sacks in 2023) but is entering a contract year without a headlining spot in the pass-rushing rotation.”

It’s a fun idea: The Bengals grab a former top-five pick who is still just 25 years old to develop alongside their bevy of other high-upside pass-rushers.

But if Thibodeaux can’t make headway with a team like the Giants, it’s hard to think the Bengals will see the appealing parts of this idea.

It’s crowded in Cincinnati as it is. They have former first-rounders Myles Murphy and Shemar Stewart. The Bengals have talked like they might have used a first-rounder on Cashius Howell. They spent big on Boye Mafe in free agency, too.