Multiple reports indicate the Bengals are looking to trade John Ross, but the club says that’s not accurate. On Wednesday, Bengals Director of Player Personnel Duke Tobin called those rumors “fake news,” and added that the club has no plans to trade the wide receiver. 
“We have had no discussion about [Ross],” Tobin said (Twitter link via Eric Edholm of Pro Football Weekly). “That’s from the ‘ready, fire, aim’ school of journalism.”
Just two years ago, Ross turned heads as an ultra-speedy prospect out of Washington. Unfortunately, injuries sidetracked him as a rookie and his usage was inconsistent in 2018. It seems unlikely that Ross is a major part of the Bengals’ plans moving forward, so Tobin’s denial should be taken with a grain of salt.
Instead, Tobin’s comments at the combine could be a last ditch effort to salvage Ross’ trade value. After investing a top 10 pick in Ross, the Bengals do not necessarily want to trade the speedster for pennies on the dollar. This year’s free agent wide receiver class is lackluster, so the Bengals could be holding out hope for an OK return via trade.
It seems like zac Taylor could use Ross in a similar role to Brandon Cooks in LA. I hope they don’t trade him. Marv just didn’t know how to use him
Great job Zach for verifying reports before posting FAKE NEWS!
The “Shopping Ross” story never made any sense. Ross has very limited trade value (if any, at all) right now, and would cost a $10mil cap charge. Additionally, it’s not like the Bengals are loaded at WR. It’s pretty much A.J. Green, Tyler Boyd, and nobody else.
No matter how hard I tried..I just could not come up with a scenario in which that trade made sense..