After spending the last five seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals, star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson entered NFL free agency already ruling out a return to Cincinnati, as the two sides weren’t seeing eye-to-eye for the better part of the last two seasons on contract negotiations.
On Wednesday, however, Hendrickson made a decision on his next destination, signing a four-year, $112 million deal with the Baltimore Ravens. He'll stay in the AFC North and will now face the Bengals twice a year.
Reacting to that news on Thursday was Bengals star offensive tackle Orlando Brown Jr., who recently signed a contract extension in Cincinnati and spoke to the media after the deal was finalized.
Brown Jr. chose to take the professional route when asked about Hendrickson, saying he’s happy for him and looks forward to facing him twice a year.
"It will be a lot of fun,” Brown said. “We've had a lot of battles over the years."
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Hendrickson made the Pro Bowl in four of his five seasons with Cincinnati and led the NFL in sacks during the 2024 season, so it is a major addition for a Ravens team that certainly has no love lost for the Bengals as division rivals.
That said, if anyone knows Hendrickson from an offensive tackle perspective, it would be Brown Jr., who has gone up against him in practice in each of the last three seasons. In the two years before that, he played for the Kansas City Chiefs, facing the Bengals on several occasions.
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