Bengals Bytes (11/1): Fumbled trade

Report: Mike, Hue nearly swap QBs again
It sounds like Bengals president Mike Brown and Browns head coach Hue Jackson were all set to swap quarterbacks again on Trading Deadline Day. But unlike what happened six years ago when the Bengals unloaded quarterback Carson Palmer on Jackson’s Raiders, this trade got done and then undone at literally the last minute and AJ McCarron is still Andy Dalton’s backup.

Week 9 Preview: Bengals at Jaguars
The NFL season enters its second half. At the midpoint, there are nine teams with a .700 or better winning percentage, led by the 7-1 (.875) Philadelphia Eagles. Since 1990, when the current 12-team playoff format was adopted, nearly 97 percent (60 of 62, 96.8 percent) of the previous teams to start 7-1 or better advanced to the postseason. Through the first eight weeks, 16 teams have a winning record. Two divisions – AFC East (New England 6-2, Buffalo 5-2, Miami 4-3) and NFC South (New Orleans 5-2, Carolina 5-3, Atlanta 4-3) – each have three teams with a winning record.

Bengals Line Highlights: Trey Hopkins
After watching the tape, I did a lot of things I was very proud of. I was proud of myself in protections, specific things that I wanted to get better from after coming from Pittsburgh. Paul (Alexander) always has a coaching plan. As an offensive lineman, you always have something that you look to improve on yourself if you want to have any kind of longevity in this league. But overall, just looking at it for what it was and getting the win, it was a game that I walked away from saying I was proud of what I did

Halloween 2017: Best Player Costumes
Happy Halloween Who Dey fans! Some of the Bengals are getting into the spirit of things by dressing up. Here are some of the best costumes from this year

Top 50 Moments: Ickey Shuffle Dance Marathon Continues in AFC Title Game
This dance marathon known as the 1988 season keeps taking another step and Ickey Woods saves the last dance for the Bengals when he leads a punishing running attack to victory in an AFC title game filed with controversy and cunning. Even though his "No Huddle" has been outlawed by NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle two hours before the Jan. 8, 1989 game, Bengals head coach Sam Wyche is still clever enough to hatch a 21-10 win over the Bills and get carried off the Riverfront Stadium turf to Miami and a date against mentor Bill Walsh in Super Bowl XXIII.

George Iloka on the Bengals, romance, and Nigerian food
Born and raised in Houston to Nigerian parents, George Iloka had to talk his way into playing American football as a kid, but once he convinced his mom, he made the most of a college career at Boise State, and onwards to Cincinnati. Now one of the premier safeties in the league, Iloka talks to KweséESPN about the Bengals' mixed season (3-4), his favourite players to watch, his time at school in Nigeria, and his melodic proposal to his fiancee.

Cincinnati Bengals trade of QB A.J. McCarron to Cleveland Browns falls through
The Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns failed to work out a trade that would have sent quarterback AJ McCarron to Cleveland, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter. According to Schefter, the Bengals notified the league of the proposed trade at 3:55 p.m. ET, and the Browns notified the league shortly after 4 p.m. ET. Because the Browns were late, the league denied the trade. Cleveland protested with the league asking that the trade be approved. The NFL rejected the Browns' protest.

Cincinnati Bengals' last midseason trade acquisition came in Disco Era
The Cincinnati Bengals operate in a way unique to many other teams. They rarely sign free agents and even more rarely make trades, with five years passing between a Bengals trade involving players. This offseason, the Bengals acquired defensive end Chris Smith for a conditional draft pick -- the first non-draft-related trade they had made since sending linebacker Keith Rivers to the Giants for a 2012 fifth-round pick (which they later used to select safety George Iloka).

Report: Bengals agreed to trade McCarron, but Browns failed to notify NFL in time
Are you ready for the most Browns story ever -- well, ever since the last most Browns story ever? Admittedly, there's been more than a few, but this one might just be the best. On Tuesday, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that the Browns and Bengals agreed on a trade centered around Bengals backup quarterback AJ McCarron, who has long been a hot commodity in the backup quarterback market, just before the NFL trade deadline. The move made sense. Sure, McCarron has barely played in the NFL, but Browns coach Hue Jackson used to be the Bengals' offensive coordinator, so he knew what he was getting in McCarron.

AFC North Bytes

Cameron Sutton back at practice for Steelers
The Steelers took cornerback Cameron Sutton in the third round of this year’s draft with the hope that he’d increase their depth in the secondary, but they haven’t gotten a return on that investment yet. Sutton hurt his hamstring before the start of the regular season and was placed on injured reserve after the cut to 53 players. There’s still hope he’ll be able to add something to the team before the year is out, however, and Sutton returned to practice on Tuesday.

Kiko Alonso, Ndamukong Suh Reportedly Avoid Suspension After Actions vs. Ravens
Alonso illegally hit Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco in the head while he was sliding, knocking him out of the game with a concussion. Suh, meanwhile, was hit with two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties in the game, one for holding down Ravens offensive lineman Ryan Jensen after the whistle and the second for putting his hand around backup quarterback Ryan Mallett's throat.

Browns’ McCarron excuse doesn’t mesh with NFL procedures
Reeling from the most public yet of their many humiliations, the Browns have blamed the failed trade for quarterback A.J. McCarron on the bunglings of the Bengals, telling Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer that the Bengals failed to send to the league the trade document signed by both teams, after the Browns had sent the signed paperwork to Cincinnati.

Random Bytes

Ezekiel Elliott Emergency Appeal Filed by NFLPA After Denied Injunction
Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott will file an emergency appeal with the 2nd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Tuesday after a New York judge denied his request for a preliminary injunction against a six-game NFL suspension Monday night.

NFL Trade Deadline 2017: Twitter Reacts to Trades, Fails, Surprises and Non-Deal
Something got into the NFL at the trade deadline this year. There was a flurry of major activity, especially over the last 24 hours.

Jeremy Lane Reportedly Fails Physical; Seahawks, Texans Trade Amended
The Seattle Seahawks reportedly had to amend their compensation package for left tackle Duane Brown on Tuesday after cornerback Jermey Lane failed his physical with the Houston Texans. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Seahawks will now send a 2018 third-round pick and 2019 second-round pick to the Texans in exchange for Brown and a 2018 fifth-round selection.