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Cincinnati Bengals DE Trey Hendrickson talks about new contract.
The long wait is over and Trey Hendrickson now has his new contract with the Cincinnati Bengals. It wasn’t the deal everyone expected, but it is a one-year $30 million deal that gives Hendrickson a $14 million raise just like the one I’m about to ask Heavy for.
Shortly after signing, Hendrickson told Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com that he believes this team has what it takes to win a Super Bowl.
“No. 9 is spinning it, so we’ve got a shot,” Hendrickson said of quarterback Joe Burrow.
There are less than two weeks to go before the Bengals kick off the regular season against the Cleveland Browns in the city that has the lake that catches on fire.
“It gives a lot of clarity to the 2025 defense,” Hendrickson said. “It gives us a couple of more good practices, and with a great offseason in the books, both personally and as a team, I feel like now we can go collectively play for the 2025 Bengals. And what’s best for the team is the best players playing in their relative positions.”
What happens to Trey Hendrickson after this year?
Hendrickson signed a one-year deal and not the three years that many were expecting (and had been reported in the media). The accepted reason for the contract holdup wasn’t over money or years, but guarantees.
So, that obviously means that Hendrickson will be a free agent following the 2025 season. Would he consider re-signing and staying with Who Dey Nation? Or, will he grab the first train out of town?
“We’re taking one day at a time,” Hendrickson said. “Moving forward, we’ll figure that out as it goes. For this season, to be given a raise I didn’t necessarily had to have been given, it’s a blessing to be in a position where I’ve been brought up to my peers. And also being able to get after quarterbacks.
“I love this city and with what’s been happening the last couple of months, I’ve had time to reflect on what it means to me and how much I want to stay a Bengal for the 2025 season.”
$30 million seems low given the market
Since it’s only the one year, you’d think that the Bengals would spend a bit more knowing it’s just a one-time thing. I’m sorry, I just spit out my Gatorade Zero as soon as I wrote that; I know better!
Some have said that it was nice to see Hendrickson get market value. But, he didn’t. His 17.5 sacks led the NFL last year and that’s now 35 in the last two seasons. Houston Texans sack specialist Danielle Hunter has 39 sacks in the last three years. His new contract is for one year at $36.5 million.
The Las Vegas Raiders‘ Maxx Crosby just signed this offseason as well. He got a three-year, $106.5 millon contract that averages about $35.5 million per season.
Maybe Hendrickson realized that it’s either take a below-market, temporary-solution deal as opposed to losing game checks. And hey, $16 million game checks are still really big. That’s a lot of money to lose. But, it’s tough to imagine him wanting to stay with an organization that went to these lengths to save a few dollars.
Micah Warren Micah Warren has been covering the NFL – and sports in general – for more than 20 years and he began writing for Heavy in 2025. His work has been featured in Yahoo!, MSN.com, Forbes, amNewYork, Off the Record, GCobb.com, Muck Rack, PR Daily, Blast Magazine and other sports and non-sports-related outlets. Micah also co-hosts “The Philly Pulse” podcast. More about Micah Warren
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