The last few days have brought a flurry of updates regarding Trey Hendrickson‘s persisting standoff with the Bengals, though there seems to be no real progress regarding contract or trade talks
Hendrickson and the Bengals reached an agreement on the length and value of an extension weeks ago, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. However, the team still refuses to guarantee money beyond the 2025 season, which has been one of the All-Pro edge rusher’s demands all along. Hendrickson confirmed the state of negotiations as described by Pelissero to ESPN’s Laura Rutledge during Monday Night Football coverage of the Bengals-Commanders preseason game (via ESPN’s Ben Baby).
Rutledge also reported that there has been no movement on a potential trade, likely due to the Bengals’ high asking price. They rejected an offer of “a second-round pick and change,” before the draft, per Pelissero, preferring a first-rounder instead. He added that the price has “softened, or at least changed a little bit,” explaining that Cincinnati is now asking for a draft pick and a young impact player to help offset the loss of Hendrickson this year.
However, that does not gel with a report from The Athletic’s Dianna Russini, who says that teams who checked in with the Bengals regarding a Hendrickson trade were given an asking price of a 2026 first-round pick and a young defensive player. That player does not necessarily have to be a pass rusher.
Despite an early report that the Browns were interested in trading for Hendrickson, Cleveland is not “seriously pursuing” the NFL’s reigning sack leader, according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. The Patriots, however, have called about Hendrickson, per Outkick’s Armando Salguero, though putting together a package that meets the Bengals’ requirements may be difficult this close to the season.
Nikhil Mehta contributed to this post.