Much has been said about the ongoing battle between the Cincinnati Bengals and star defensive end Trey Hendrickson. Hendrickson reportedly passed up a $28 million offer, he won’t play under his current contract, the two sides are far apart on a new deal, etc.
Hendrickson is set to make $16 million for the 2025 NFL season on the last year of his current deal. The entire situation has been heavily debated.
Bleacher Report insider James Palmer recently spoke with Kay Adams and he doesn’t think Hendrickson will be traded before the season.
“I do think something gets done [with the Bengals]. I think he ends up staying,” Palmer said. “I think that’s the most likely type of thing that ends up happening… You don’t make the deals for Ja’Marr [Chase] and Tee Higgins, and you have the deal in place for Joe [Burrow], and you push for all of those contracts to be done to not be on a Super Bowl pursuit. You can’t win a Super Bowl without a star pass rusher.”
The 30-year old Hendrickson has had back-to-back 17.5-sack seasons, leading the entire NFL this past year. He had a 3.5-sack lead over superstud defensive end Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns. Garrett signed a four-year extension in March worth $40 million per year and includes $123.5 million in guaranteed money.
If the reports of Hendrickson turning down $28 million per year are true, is he hoping to get Garrett money? At first one would think it’s not likely because Hendrickson is 30-years old, but keep in mind Garrett is 29 and plays the same position. It’s not out of the realm of possibility to think Garrett’s deal is the starting point for negotiations.
Hendrickson not likely to be traded
The toughest part regarding a Hendrickson trade isn’t because no one would want him. Quite the opposite. But, the Bengals likely want a haul and any team trading for him has to part with a lot of resources in addition to breaking the bank on a new contract. And, it is incredibly tough to see a one-year rental trade happening.
Palmer thinks that it’s much more likely that something gets worked out with the Bengals.
“I just think it’s hard when you mentioned him getting moved when everyone’s already spent their money in free agency,” Palmer said. “They already went through the Draft and filled some holes there as well. The amount of money that you probably have to have, because you’re not going to trade for [Hendrickson] and not sign him. It’s gonna be a difficult process… Deals like this don’t happen trade wise at this point in the NFL calendar very often.”
Brown doesn’t love opening up the checkbook
The Bengals do have a reputation for being tight with the purse strings. In 2009, first-round pick Andre Smith didn’t sign until late August of that year. In 2001, first-round pick Justin Smith was the last first rounder to sign with his team that year. Those are just two examples.
Back in 2023, Shannon Sharpe and Skip Bayless discussed Hendrickson’s situation by strongly noting that Bengals owner Mike Brown is cheap. Even just two years later, Sharpe and Bayless seem prescient.
“Trey Hendrickson, he knew Mike Brown was cheap. He knew the history of the Cincinnati Bengals…he signed with the cheap Bengals!,” Sharpe said then. “What do you want me to make of this Skip? Everybody knows the Bengals are cheap.”
Bayless was quick to pile on. “The Cincinnati stuff didn’t surprise me one bit because that’s who they’ve always been,” Bayless said. “A mom’s and pop’s shop, operation.”
This is what Henrickson is up against. He sees guys like Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Joe Burrow getting big paydays and he – rightfully – believes that he’s entitled to his too. 30 sacks in the last two years is really tough to argue with. If the Bengals are serious about contending for a Super Bowl (and that’s anyone’s guess), they can’t possibly be willing to lose that kind of production on a defense that was 25th in the NFL in 2024.
Insider Doesn’t Think Bengals Will Trade Star Defender