The Cincinnati Bengals are keeping one of their key players, agreeing to a one-year, $30 million deal with All-Pro defensive end Trey Hendrickson, per multiple reports. Hendrickson can still become a free agent next offseason.
Hendrickson and the Bengals were in a contract dispute for virtually the entire offseason, with Cincinnati allowing him to talk to other teams about a potential trade at one point. However, no deal came to fruition, and Hendrickson wound up being a hold-in for much of training camp.
Rumors of a possible trade surrounding Hendrickson continued to swirl well into training camp and the preseason.
Prior to Monday, Hendrickson was initially owed $16 million for the final year of his contract, which was a relatively measly amount considering how much other top edge rushers were paid this offseason. T.J. Watt became the latest to earn a rich deal at the position, agreeing to a three-year, $123 million ($41 million per year) deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers this offseason. Micah Parsons seems like a possibility to break that mark as well, but he’s also in a contract dispute with his team and requested a trade from the Dallas Cowboys earlier in August.
Hendrickson, who racked up an NFL-leading 17.5 sacks last season, is the third member of the Bengals to get a huge pay raise this offseason. In March, Cincinnati signed wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins to record deals.
Additionally, Hendrickson has also been good at generating pressure. He had 83 pressures and was second in pass rush win rate last season (24%). He has also finished in the top 10 in pass rush win rate among edge rushers in all four years he’s been with the Bengals.
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