Cincinnati fans have spent the week bouncing between two calendars. One says the Bengals host the 1-6 Titans at Paycor Stadium on Sunday. The other counts down to the Nov. 10 trade deadline, and the name that keeps popping up in Bengals trade rumors this week belongs to Eagles running back Saquon Barkley.
Cincinnati is 4-2 after a 35-13 comeback win in Baltimore, and a 10-point favorite at home per DraftKings odds via SI. Here’s what fans are asking before kickoff.
Will the Bengals trade for Saquon Barkley by the Nov. 10 deadline?
Steve Roberts-Imagn Images
Nobody has reported talks. The idea started with Sports Illustrated’s Conor Orr, who pitched Barkley to Cincinnati in his dream deadline deals on Oct. 28 and pictured Barkley and Chase Brown on the field together. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano wrote that Tennessee’s Tony Pollard is the more likely back to be dealt than Barkley.
The football case is easy to see. Brown is averaging 3.5 yards per carry, and PFF has him 26th of 44 backs at 2.54 yards after contact per attempt. Barkley averaged 5.7 yards per carry on a 43-carry sample before he left Monday’s loss to Dallas after 10 snaps with a lower back injury. As we laid out in our look at Barkley and Brown, he’s owed only about $867,000 for the rest of 2026, but $16 million in 2027. He turns 30 in February. For now, file it under wishful thinking.
Is Shemar Stewart getting traded?
ESPN’s Fowler and Matt Bowen ranked Stewart 15th among their top 25 deadline candidates and gave him a 35% chance of being moved, with a Day 3 pick the likely return. The 2025 first-round pick was a healthy scratch in Baltimore, and he has one sack and three tackles in three games.
The people closest to the team are pumping the brakes. The Athletic’s Paul Dehner Jr. reported Cincinnati isn’t planning to trade him, and head coach Zac Taylor said Stewart is doing all the right things. There’s also the money. Moving him now would mean absorbing $7.8 million in dead money on the 17th overall pick to get a late-round pick back. Expect calls. Don’t expect a deal unless someone overpays.
Who plays tight end now that Erick All is on IR?
Mike Gesicki was already the main receiving threat at the position, and the Bengals now need him more than ever after placing All on injured reserve with a feared torn ACL. Gesicki has 13 catches for 165 yards and five touchdowns, and he has scored in four straight games, the longest streak by a tight end in team history, per the Bengals’ game preview.
Behind him, rookie Jack Endries is the name to know. Taylor said Monday that Endries takes almost all of the scout-team reps, which is why the staff feels ready to lean on him with the starters. Drew Sample stays the blocker, and Cam Grandy is back on the 53-man roster to help there. Tanner Hudson is also on IR, which is why Dallas Goedert’s name has crept into deadline talk.
What does the Jeffery Simmons trade mean for Sunday?
Tennessee sent its best defender to Chicago on Oct. 29 for two first-round picks, so the Titans play their first game without him. Simmons had four sacks and 38 tackles in seven games. Tennessee already allows 131.1 rushing yards per game, 26th in the league.
What’s left up front is Jermaine Johnson II, who has three sacks and had five pressures against the Browns, according to PFF, plus Jacob Martin and his team-high 3.5 sacks. John Franklin-Myers is questionable with groin and back injuries. Bengals center Ted Karras didn’t sound like a guy taking anything for granted. “We have to take a deeper look and anticipate how they’ll play without him,” Karras told Bengals.com Thursday. The opening for Joe Burrow is real, though. Tennessee already ranked 26th by success rate against the pass with Simmons.
Is Ja’Marr Chase OK, and why is Tee Higgins out-producing him?
Chase is fine for Sunday. He missed Wednesday’s practice with a rest/ankle designation, then practiced fully Friday and carries no game status on the final injury report.
The production gap is real, though. Higgins has 33 catches for 571 yards (ninth in the NFL) and a 91.4 PFF grade. Chase has 32 catches for 351 yards with five touchdowns, and his 1.90 yards per route run trails Higgins’ 2.83, as we noted in our breakdown of Chase’s contract. Chase knows it. “I want a breakout game. I think it’s overdue,” he said in a sit-down with Bengals.com. Tennessee’s top corner, Cor’Dale Flott, has two interceptions and earned an 83.3 coverage grade against the Browns, according to PFF, so Chase will have to earn it.
More on the Bengals
- Announcers, Referees, and Jersey Combination for Bengals Week 8 Game vs. Titans
- Predicting Bengals Starting Lineup and Depth Chart vs. Titans for NFL Week 8
- Cincinnati Bengals’ Passing Game Gained Its Best Chance to Break Loose With Jeffery Simmons trade
- Kyle Dugger Is Out for the Bengals Against the Titans as Budda Baker Trade Talk Lingers
