Over the last few years of Cincinnati Bengals football, we’ve raised the point of Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Derek Barnett as a possible trade candidate.
Now Barnett is set to be a free agent after the Eagles waived him on Friday.
The 14th overall pick in 2017, Barnett never surpassed 6.5 sacks in a season with the Eagles and last year saw his playing time take a nose dive. Things escalated over the last few weeks, as he was a healthy scratch in Week 9 and recently listed as out due to personal reasons.
Despite that spiral that led to his departure in Philadelphia, Barnett is still just 27 years old and inheriting his contract wouldn’t cost all that much.
More importantly, the Bengals could really use some better pass-rushing depth after a brutally slow start for the likes of Joseph Ossai. Adding Barnett now could help the defense carry the Joe Burrow-less offense while also giving the team a look at a guy who might be able to be part of the long-term plan.
As always with waiver claims though, the Bengals won’t get first priority if they choose to go after Barnett on the wire.
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