Cincinnati Bengals: 3 Reactions to John Ross trade rumors

A Split Is The Best Option

There’s still time for Ross to find success in his career of course (he’s only 24), but it is clear that he won’t ever be the player Cincinnati drafted him to be. Maybe he can follow the path of someone like Heyward-Bey: after failing to ever be the player Oakland drafted him so highly to be, he was able to more than double the length of his career by signing on with Indianapolis and then Pittsburgh in smaller roles and contribute to winning squads.

For Cincinnati, it’ll hurt to essentially give up on a guy after two seasons, but they shouldn’t fall into the sunk cost fallacy with a player who likely won’t turn into anything more than hype and wasted potential for them.

Holding onto Ross simply because they once spent a high pick on him does them no good if he isn’t going to actually be a player who was worth that pick in the first place. Plus, the franchise is in the earliest stages of a true overhaul now that Lewis is gone; this is the perfect time to make tough but necessary decisions, and to actually stock up on talent which wants to be there and is able to contribute to winning for years to come.

For the sake of both sides, let’s hope this ends quickly, and they can move forward without the burdens which put them in this unenviable position any longer.