Cincinnati Bengals DE Trey Hendrickson led the league in sacks last season, helped by a late surge. While he is not the favorite to win, he is one of five finalists for the Defensive Player of the Year Award. Should he win, he would be the third edge defender in the AFC North to win in the past four years.
And he would make the third AFC North edge rusher to face trade speculation this offseason. In the case of Hendrickson, he falls somewhere between T.J. Watt and Myles Garrett. Garrett himself requested a trade because he wants to be on a good team. Watt said he doesn’t want to be traded yet some feel the Steelers need to move him to build for the future.
Hendrickson? He is on a potentially championship-caliber team, but it’s unclear whether the Bengals can pay him the going rate. The 2025 season will be the final year of his contract, but he made it clear he wants an extension. Or a trade.
“If it’s something we can agree on in terms, that would be great. Ideally, my wife and I would love to stay in Cincinnati”, Hendrickson told Pat McAfee, via Ben Baby of ESPN. “If it’s something that helps the Bengals win the Super Bowl, if they get picks or anything like that, I want to help win a Super Bowl for Cincinnati, whether I’m there or not”.
While he didn’t use the T word, it’s not hard to figure out, is it? In order to “get picks” for Trey Hendrickson, the Bengals would have to trade him. And it’s starting to sound as if he plans to request a trade if he doesn’t see a new deal coming. Hendrickson already requested a trade last April, so this isn’t exactly a stunner.
Director of player personnel Duke Tobin did sound somewhat skeptical on the subject, which is unsurprising for the Bengals. If it isn’t Joe Burrow or Ja’Marr Chase, they have a tight grip on the purse strings. He said they will try to re-sign Hendrickson, but they can’t have top-of-the-payroll players everywhere.
“I would have preferred to have heard it differently than my dad texting me a tweet”, Trey Hendrickson told The Pat McAfee Show about his reaction to Tobin’s recent comments. “That would have been a great way to figure it out”.
The Bengals’ top priority this offseason is to extend Ja’Marr Chase, which won’t be cheap. He should become the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history at some point in the coming months. And their other starting receiver, Tee Higgins, is an unrestricted free agent. But can they afford to let one of their best defenders go?
The Bengals’ defense took a major step back last season, resulting in the dismissal of DC Lou Anarumo. Hendrickson was one of the few bright spots amidst the chaos, earning first-team All-Pro honors. If they don’t have money for him, he will gladly seek it elsewhere, it seems. Again.
