Chicago Bears trade running back Khalil Herbert to Cincinnati Bengals in exchange for 7th-round pick

The Chicago Bears made one relatively minor move ahead of Tuesday’s NFL trade deadline, sending running back Khalil Herbert to the Cincinnati Bengals. In exchange, the Bears received a 2025 seventh-round draft pick.

Herbert was in the final year of his rookie contract and he had hardly played this season with the Bears. The team hadn’t given him a single carry since Week 3. He spent the final two games of his Bears career on the inactive list. For the season, Herbert has 16 rushing yards and one touchdown on eight carries.

Despite not playing in Chicago, Herbert likely was an attractive running back for teams in need of a ball carrier at the deadline. Just two years ago, Herbert led all NFL running backs in yards per carry. He was consistently one of the most efficient runners in the league during his first three NFL seasons, according to NFL Next Gen Stats’ advanced metrics. Last season, he was the Bears’ leading rusher at the running back position [Justin Fields led the team overall].

The Bengals lost running back Zack Moss to a neck injury this week. Head coach Zac Taylor said Moss will be out indefinitely. That made running back a clear area of need for a Bengals team that has won three of its past four games and still believes itself to be a contender at 4-5.

The Bengals still have second-year running back Chase Brown, but were in need of another option at the position.

For the Bears, it made some sense to move on from Herbert if they weren’t going to use him. Bears general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus inherited Herbert from the previous front office, and they made multiple moves to upgrade the running back position over the past two years.

The Bears signed running back D’Andre Swift to a three-year, $24.5 million contract in March. They drafted running back Roschon Johnson with a fourth-round pick a year ago. Johnson has been option No. 2 in the backfield this season. With Herbert buried at No. 3.

It’s hard even for the running back room, there’s just not enough footballs to hand to everybody.”

—  Chad Morton, Bears running backs coach

Asked last week by Shaw Local News Network why Herbert wasn’t playing, Bears running backs coach Chad Morton noted that the Bears were crowded at the position.

“It’s going to come down to the role on the team,” Morton said. “Special teams is a big part of that, too. It’s hard even for the running back room, there’s just not enough footballs to hand to everybody. So if you’re not going to be the starter, you have to play special teams.”

Herbert has been a kick returner in the past, but he hasn’t contributed much else on special teams. The Bears could’ve held on to him for depth. They might regret trading him if Swift or Johnson gets hurt down the stretch. But Herbert was set to walk away in free agency this winter, so on some level the move isn’t a huge surprise.

Generally speaking, this was a quiet trade deadline for Poles. In his first two years as GM, he was incredibly active at the deadline. Two years ago, he traded away linebacker Roquan Smith and acquired wide receiver Chase Claypool in a pair of blockbuster moves. Last year, he traded for Pro Bowl pass rusher Montez Sweat.

It was, however, a relatively quiet trade deadline across the league. Detroit acquired pass rusher Za’Darius Smith from Cleveland and Washington traded for New Orleans cornerback Marshon Lattimore. Those were the only splashy trades Tuesday.