One of the biggest storylines of the 2025 offseason has been the Cincinnati Bengals' allowing defensive end Trey Hendrickson to seek a trade partner despite being under contract for one more year.
Despite that, there's still hope that a new extension can be reached, with Jordan Shultz of Fox Sports even reporting that the team would like to negotiate a new deal and "a trade is really off the table."
However, during an appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show" on Wednesday, Hendrickson revealed one major criticism about the Bengals throughout this process.
Communication has been poor over the last couple of months," he said. "That's something I hold in high regard. They have not communicated with my agent directly. It's been something that's been a little bit frustrating."
"Those comments from Katie Blackburn were definitely disappointing & communication has been poor over the last couple of months..
It's been a little bit frustrating & if they have anything they'd like to discuss we're definitely willing to listen" ~ Trey Hendrickson #PMSLivepic.twitter.com/C9PUdfKewj
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) April 2, 2025
Of course, the four-time Pro Bowler and one-time First-Team All-Pro is set to cash out after an amazing 2024 season, accumulating 46 tackles, 17.5 sacks (led the NFL), 19 tackles for loss, 36 quarterback hits, and 54 pressures.
Currently, Spotrac predicts that Hendrickson's market value should earn him an annual salary of $31.5 million, which would rank fourth-highest among all defensive ends in the NFL.
The big question now is whether or not the Bengals actually want to shell out that kind of money for Hendrickson, as they currently have just $24.4 million in cap space, which ranks 15th out of every team.
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This story was originally published April 2, 2025 at 1:49 PM.