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Ben Baby, ESPN Staff Writer
CINCINNATI — Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson requested a trade Wednesday, his agent, Harold Lewis, confirmed to ESPN.
Lewis told ESPN that Hendrickson’s request is about a long-term investment from the franchise after the two sides settled on a one-year extension last year.
“Our No. 1 goal is to get a long-term commitment from them,” Lewis said on the eve of the NFL draft. “If we can’t, then we’re asking for a trade. And hopefully if he gets traded, that’s what we do — get a long-term commitment with somewhere else.”
Last year, Hendrickson received a one-year contract extension worth $21 million, which included an $8 million signing bonus, according to Roster Management System. After another season in which he was one of the league’s best defensive ends, Hendrickson is looking to cash in again.
Lewis said he and Hendrickson met with the Bengals in a two-hour meeting in March to discuss the possibility of a potential trade. Hendrickson’s agent said that the team is willing to discuss a potential new deal next year, with his current contract set to turn through the 2025 season. In that meeting, the Bengals indicated they had no interest in trading Hendrickson.
A source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter that Cincinnati is not interested in trading Hendrickson.
In 2023, Hendrickson finished the season with 17.5 sacks, which was second in the NFL behind the Pittsburgh Steelers‘ T.J. Watt. It is the highest total for the Bengals since sacks became an official statistic in 1982.
The advanced metrics were equally as impressive. Hendrickson finished 11th in pass rush win rate as an edge rusher, an ESPN metric powered by NFL Next Gen Stats, and created the second-most sacks (18) in the league, trailing only the Kansas City Chiefs‘ Chris Jones. When Hendrickson registered the first pressure, opponents’ completion rate was just 26.7%, according to ESPN Stats & Information data.
While Hendrickson’s on-field performance puts him in the same tier as the league’s best, his contract numbers lag behind. According to data from OverTheCap.com, the average annual value of Hendrickson’s extension that he signed in 2023 ranked 11th among all edge rushers.
Hendrickson has overdelivered on the four-year deal worth $60 million he signed in 2021. The former third-round pick out of Florida Atlantic reached the Pro Bowl in each of his first three seasons with Cincinnati, and he has registered 39.5 total sacks with the club.
“He has his own way about going about his business, and his is about being the best player he can be and making sure we’re the best team we can be,” Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo said of Hendrickson at the NFL scouting combine Feb. 29.
Hendrickson is the second star player to have requested a trade from the Bengals this offseason. Wide receiver Tee Higgins, who received the franchise tag from the team, requested to be traded in March. However, Higgins said earlier this month he expected to play for the Bengals this season.
Lewis said Hendrickson isn’t looking to be the highest-paid player at his position and that he has gone above and beyond during his time with the Bengals. In addition to his on-field numbers, Hendrickson also played through a broken wrist at the end of the 2022 season. He missed only one week despite looking at an initial prognosis that could have kept him out for four weeks. That season, Cincinnati repeated as AFC North winners and went to the AFC Championship Game for the second straight year, losing to Kansas City.
“I have a lot of respect for the organization,” Lewis said. “[Vice president] Troy Blackburn’s a good guy and he’s running a family business over there. But every player wants security. They want to know that they’re going to be around there for a while. This is a vicious game.”
