Confusing perspective on Carlos Dunlap

We're not one to rip someone based on the information they receive from external sources, but we're scratching our heads about this one. Tony Pauline, who writes for DraftInsider.net with a perspective that I usually respect, adds an odd, and extremely unexpected note on his Combine news and notes from Sunday.

I’m told the Cincinnati Bengals may have to cut Carlos Dunlap in order to create the salary cap room necessary to sign a number of other highly considered players on their roster about to hit free agency.

There are two "highly considered players" on the team's roster set to hit free agency -- Michael Johnson and Anthony Collins. There are a handful of players that are entering the final year under contract, such as A.J. Green, Vontaze Burfict and Andy Dalton, that the team would like to get under contract sooner rather than later.

However, there's absolutely no indication that the team is pressed for cash that they'd release one of their more talented defensive players on the roster.

Dunlap signed a five-year deal worth $39.37 million last July, extending a rookie deal that was set to expire this offseason. With the salary cap projected at $132 million, the Bengals having nearly $30 million in cap space, Michael Johnson set to leave for free agency, and a $6.4 million penalty for releasing Dunlap (only saving $2.2 million against the cap), I'm not sure where or how this point surfaced.

Maybe it was just a mistake and the reference was regarding Domata Peko, who will have a $5.1 million cap number in 2014 -- a point we've made earlier this year, asking if a deal will be made to free room.

Like I mentioned above -- I won't talk down about a writer who writes something that's possibly incendiary without much common sense due to the reliance of a source, but this absolutely confuses me. Then again, mistakes happen.