Essentially, by acquiring Ebiketie, the Bengals would have negated a compensatory third-round pick in 2027 they were in line to earn from losing [Trey Hendrickson](/players/trey-hendrickson) to the Baltimore Ravens in free agency. Since Ebiketie was a compensatory formula signing for the Eagles, trading that contract would cancel out a pick for the acquiring team.
The math on the trade went from the Bengals sending a sixth-round pick for a backup edge rusher to losing a sixth- and a third-round pick. That would have been disastrous for Cincinnati.
Not long after Korte’s post, which had many Bengals fans freaking out, Cincinnati reportedly backed out on the trade.
NFL Network Insider Mike Garafolo reported that the Eagles weren't thrilled after the trade was called off, but because it was agreed to and not official, there is nothing Philadelphia general manager Howie Roseman can do about it.
And that's is how a contract analyst helped save the Bengals a third-round draft pick. They should thank Korte by hiring him. Someone should.