The Cincinnati Bengals have been radio silent in contract talks with defensive end Trey Hendrickson, who has been asking for a long-term contract extension for much of the offseason.
“The offers prior to the draft did not reflect the vision we shared and were promised last offseason if I continued to play at a high level. Coaches are aware of these past conversations. Rather than using collaboration to get us to a point to bring me home to the team, THEY are no longer communicating,” he said.
“I have been eagerly awaiting a resolution of this situation, but that’s hard to do when there is no discussion and an evident lack of interest in reaching mutual goals.”
The saga began in March, when the Bengals gave Hendrickson permission to seek a trade. At the NFL Annual Meetings in April, Bengals Executive Vice President Katie Blackburn explained the decision.
“As you’re trying [to put] all these pieces together, you have certain limitations eventually,” Blackburn said, via the Cincinnati Enquirer.
“So he seemed to feel strongly about it, and thought the strength of interest out there was going to be at a certain level. And so, we said that it would be okay to at least explore and so we don’t do that all the time, but in this case, we felt like it was the right thing to do, case by case basis every time.”
But Blackburn also suggested that Hendrickson’s asking price may be too high.
“I think he should be happy at certain rates that maybe he doesn’t think he'd be happy at,” Blackburn said.
“I think some of it is on him to be happy at some point, and if he’s not, you know, that’s what holds it up sometimes. So, you know, it takes him to say yes to something, and also, we have all the respect in the world for him. He’s been a great player. We’re happy to have him. And so maybe we'll find a way to get something to work. We’re just gonna see where it goes.”
“It’s been something that’s been a little bit frustrating, but this is the business of it,” he said.
“I’m incredibly blessed to be in the NFL, I’m excited to be a Bengal...they are more than welcome to call me. I’ve had [the] same cell phone number since high school, open line of communication is always open with me and my agents. So if they have anything they'd like to discuss, we’ve been nothing but willing to listen.”
A third-round pick of the New Orleans Saints in 2017, Hendrickson exploded onto the scene in 2020, when he registered 13.5 sacks.
He signed a four-year, $60 million contract with the Bengals in 2021 and was named as their starting defensive end alongside Sam Hubbard.
He racked up 14 sacks in his first season in Cincinnati and was named to his first Pro Bowl. He registered just eight sacks in 2022, but rebounded in a big way in 2023 with 17.5 sacks, a career high. He repeated that number in 2024, which also led the league.
Hendrickson has been named to Pro Bowls in each of his four seasons with the Bengals and has two First-Team All-Pro selections in 2023 and 2024.
According to Spotrac, Hendrickson has one year left on his current deal with Cincinnati; he is set to make $15.8 million in base salary, with a $2.667 million signing bonus. His market value currently sits at about $31.5 million, which would be the fifth-highest average salary among defensive ends in the league.
Hendrickson’s future with the team is truly uncertain. He has been unable to secure a trade so far, and the Bengals drafted Texas A&M’s Shemar Stewart with their first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
