The Bengals Must Value Trey Hendrickson the Way He Values Them
Credit: Sam Greene via Imagn Images
The Cincinnati Bengals have a lot to think about this offseason. As of right now, three of their four best players currently have uncertain futures in Cincinnati. Ja’Marr Chase is due for an extension, and those contract talks have been painful at best. Tee Higgins is PFF’s top free agent of this offseason, and while the Bengals would love to keep him, it would not be a surprise if Cincinnati drops the ball and lets him walk.
That brings us to, Trey Hendrickson, whose future as a Bengal has been in question before. Luckily this offseason, the stud edge rusher has made it known that not only does he want to remain a Bengal, but that Cincinnati is a special place to him and his family.
“You know, if it’s something that we can agree on in terms, that would be great,” Hendrickson said on The Pat McAfee Show. “Ideally, my wife and I would love to stay in Cincinnati. If it’s something that helps the Bengals win a Super Bowl, if they get picks, or anything like that, I want to help win a Super Bowl for Cincinnati if I’m there or not.”
In terms of the level in which a statement jumps out at me, “If I’m there or not” ranks right up there with “Say Drake.” He’s asking the Bengals organization to respect him the way he respects them. Not only is Hendrickson’s contract the 11th best-value out of 245 edge rushers per OverTheCap.com, but Trey has alluded to the fact that the Bengals have taken him for granted.
Duke Tobin makes comments about Trey's possible future and Hendrickson hears about it in a text from his dad.
Bengals front office and scouting department have NO idea what they're doing nor how to communicate with their players.
They deserve their shit reputation. https://t.co/Tjawu1WMyg
— joshkirkendall.bsky.social (@Josh_Kirkendall) February 5, 2025
If the Bengals lose him, they won’t take his missing production for long. The team is coming off a season where they had the seventh-fewest sacks in the NFL (36) despite having the NFL’s sack leader on their defensive line. Especially given the uncertainty of a new defensive regime under Al Golden, having proven All-Pro production at a price that Trey Hendrickson has openly said won’t be unreasonable is the bare minimum for any plan to improve.
Call me old-fashioned, but that’s far from the way the NFL’s sack champion should be treated by the front office. It’s not exactly competent management, either, though I’m fully aware that asking the Bengals front office for competence is a big ask.
In a week where Joe Burrow put public pressure on the Bengals to retain Cincinnati’s core players, the Bengals must respond accordingly and value Trey the way he values them. For the front office, that starts being better at communication, and they might want to send him that message quickly, or they’ll find themselves wishing they had.
Every time I watch Trey Hendrickson play football it makes me sick to my stomach. The #Saints had this type of player with this type of production in their building and they let him walk. And we all know if they really wanted to keep him they could’ve done it.
— Timothy J Jones (@tjayjones8) January 5, 2025
Hendrickson, who had the NFL’s fifth-highest PFF Pass Rush Grade (90.4), will be entering his age-31 season and only has so many productive years left before Father Time claims his inevitable victory. Even so, he’s shown no signs of slowing down, and the Bengals don’t have a ready-made replacement. Cincinnati’s other edge rushers are young, unproven options like Joseph Ossai, Myles Murphy, Cedric Johnson, and Early-Draft-Pick-To-Be-Named-Later. Even with the flashes of potential that all of them have shown, Hendrickson is the one who has proven elite pass-rushing prowess.
Hendrickson has made the Pro Bowl in every year he’s been with the Bengals, so while retaining his services will be costly, it’s also likely to be worth every penny. Per Jeremy Fowler, Hendrickson could make $30 million per year on the open market, which is exactly double what the Bengals paid him annually when they signed him four offseasons ago. Well, time to pay up.
But of course, paying up is always an issue in Cincinnati. The Bengals’ notorious frugality, especially when they have to pay Chase and/or Higgins, may very well rear its ugly head, perhaps with Hendrickson getting dealt as a cost-cutting measure.
The litmus test for whether the Bengals are ready to truly invest in a Super Bowl contender during Burrow’s second contract isn’t going to be whether they ink Chase to an extension. Any team should be willing to do that. It won’t be whether Higgins sticks around. It’s going to be whether or not they make Hendrickson feel valued enough to stay. We’ll see what happens soon enough.
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