Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson (91) holds up his finger after a defensive stop with 4 seconds left in the second half the NFL football game on Sunday, Dec. 19, 2021, at Empower Field in Denver, Co. Cincinnati Bengals defeated Denver Broncos 15-10.

Cincinnati Bengals Make Defense Roster Announcement Amid Trey Hendrickson Contract Drama

Originally posted on Gridiron Heroics | By Rex Villas | Last updated May 13, 2025 7:33 AM ET

The Cincinnati Bengals took care of business with wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins by signing both downfield Joe Burrow weapons to contract extensions.

However, there is a glaring contract situation that Cincinnati has yet to take care of, and it involves star defensive end Trey Hendrickson, who recently shared a blunt update about the lack of communication with the Bengals (h/t Adam Schefter of ESPN).

“No communication has taken place between my camp and the organization post draft. The offers prior to the draft did not reflect the vision we shared and were promised last offseason if I continued to play at a high level. Coaches are aware of these past conversations. Rather than using collaboration to get us to a point to bring me home to the team, THEY are no longer communicating. I have been eagerly awaiting a resolution of this situation, but that’s hard to do when there is no discussion and an evident lack of interest in reaching mutual goals.”

The Cincinnati Bengals shared an under-the-radar move on Monday

The 30-year-old Hendrickson only has a year left on his current contract, as he will be earning $15.8 million in the 2025 NFL campaign. In the 2024 season, Hendrickson led the NFL with 17.5 sacks to go with 46 combined tackles.

While there’s no clarity at the moment about the direction of Hendrickson’s contract extension, the Bengals have recently made a low-key roster move on their stop unit.

Via the Bengals’ official website:

The Bengals today signed college free agent S Shaquan Loyal and waived CB Micah Abraham.

Loyal (6-0, 202) is a rookie out of Rutgers University. Abraham spent the final 12 games of the 2024 regular season on Cincinnati’s practice squad, after signing to the practice squad in October.

Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson (91) celebrates as the Steelers prepare to punt in the fourth quarter of the NFL Week 18 game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. The Bengals won 19-17 to finish the regular season at 9-8.

This article first appeared on Gridiron Heroics and was syndicated with permission.

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