Katie Blackburn Sheds Light on Bengals Contract Talks With Trey Hendrickson, Including Trade Request

The Bengals gave Trey Hendrickson permission to seek a trade last month, but he's still on the roster.

Does that mean they intend to keep him this season? Are they hoping to sign him to a long-term extension?

Bengals Executive Vice President Katie Blackburn answered multiple questions about Hendrickson's future on Tuesday afternoon following NFL owner's meetings in West Palm Beach, Florida.

“I wish I knew for sure exactly what would happen. I'd be lying if I said I knew exactly what's going to happen,” Blackburn told reporters, including Kelsey Conway of the Cincinnati Enquirer. “We'll just have to see how it all plays out.”

Hendrickson led the NFL in sacks with 17.5 last season. He has 35 sacks over the past two years and is playing the best football of his career. He turned 30 years old in December, but is clearly one of the premiere pass rushers in the sport.

Why did the Bengals give him permission to seek a trade?

“As you're trying (to put) all these pieces together, you have certain limitations eventually,” Blackburn said. “He seemed to feel strongly about it, and thought the strength of interest out there was going to be at a certain level. And so, we said that it would be okay to at least explore. And you're right, we don't do that all the time, but in this case, we felt like it was the right thing to do, case by case basis every time."

Translation: "This was a unique situation with one of our best players, but unless we got a great offer, we were never going to trade him. This isn't something we'll do often."

The Bengals shouldn't trade Hendrickson. They never got offered the first round pick they were seeking. Even then, it's hard to envision the scenario where the 2025 Cincinnati Bengals are better without their star defensive end.

A team that's in win-now mode should be looking to sign Hendrickson to a new contract. It sounds like that's their goal, but the NFL's sack leader is asking for more than the Bengals want to pay—at least right now.

“He should be happy at certain rates that maybe he doesn't think he'd be happy at,” Blackburn said. “Some of it is on him to be happy at some point, and if he's not, that's what holds it up sometimes. It takes him to say yes to something. We have all the respect in the world for him. He's been a great player. We're happy to have him. And so maybe we'll find a way to get something to work. We're just gonna see where it goes.”

Hendrickson is set to make $16 million in base salary this season after receiving a $5 million signing bonus for the 2025 campaign earlier in his contract. The $21 million salary is much less than his market value.

The All-Pro pass rusher is likely seeking a two or three-year extension with significant guarantees, especially after guys like Myles Garrett, Maxx Crosby and Danielle Hunter all signed new contracts worth $35+ million in average annual salary.

The Bengals have time to reach a long-term deal with Hendrickson. If they don't plan on trading him and it doesn't seem like they do, then they can take their time and work out a long-term deal after the 2025 NFL Draft.

If they are still open to trading Hendrickson, then the draft is essentially a deadline for it. The Bengals aren't going to trade him for assets they can't use until next April. If they trade Hendrickson, they'd want a pick [or picks] in this year's draft.

The 2025 NFL Draft is from April 24-26. Check out Conway's entire story here.