If you’re a Cincinnati Bengals fan hoping that the team will make a major move prior to the 2024 NFL trade deadline after an underwhelming 3-5 start to the season, you’re in for a disappointment. While their conference rivals continue to make moves in the name of improvement, the Bengals plan to stand pat, as has become customary, according to Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic.

The Bengals are an organization that simply doesn’t believe in midseason moves, and that apparently isn’t going to change this year. From Dehner:

“If you’re looking for the Bengals to break with their history and become active at the trade deadline, go looking somewhere else. Just like nearly every year, Cincinnati doesn’t have plans to make moves with the trade deadline approaching next Tuesday.”

Roster-wise, the Bengals are in limbo. They think they’re good enough to compete as currently constructed, so they don’t want to strip it down and sell off parts, but they also don’t want to mortgage their future in order to acquire additional assets in the present. So, it seems like fans can continue to expect to see a mediocre team with an elite quarterback.

That’s what the Bengals have become after a half-decade of the Joe Burrow era. A team that basically always has a chance to compete thanks to Burrow’s excellence, but that doesn’t have a solid-enough supporting cast.

One of the biggest questions facing the Bengals heading into the dealine is what they plan to do with star receiver Tee Higgins, who requested a trade away from the team over the offseason due to the lack of a long-term extension. It seems exceedingly likely that Higgins will sign elsewhere in free agency next offseason, so by dealing him before the deadline, the Bengals could get something in return for Higgins, as opposed to potentially losing him for nothing in a few months.

They don’t plan to do that, though, as the organization is still holding out hope for a playoff run, and Higgins is integral to the success of the offense. The same can be said about defensive end Trey Hendrickson, who also requested a trade over the offseason. Again, from Dehmer:

“The big names associated with the Bengals in trade talks — Tee Higgins and Trey Hendrickson — are two who have openly requested trades this calendar year after expressing displeasure with their contract situations. The Bengals still very much see a path to making the playoffs in a mediocre AFC, so there is no shot either of those two would be shipped.”

So, there you have it. It sounds like it’s going to be another quiet trade deadline in Cincinnati, even though being active in either direction — either as a seller or a buyer — would probably be the better move for a Bengals team currently stuck in the middle.