Why Trey Hendrickson remained with Bengals through trade deadline

Some believed the Cincinnati Bengals would unofficially give up on this season by trading pass-rusher Trey Hendrickson for a future draft pick after falling to 3-6 via a frustrating 47-42 loss to the Chicago Bears on Sunday. 

However, the Bengals kept Hendrickson through Tuesday's trade deadline. In a piece published Tuesday night, The Athletic's Paul Dehner Jr. revealed that the Bengals "weren’t going to wave the white flag on this season" even though the team didn't make a big-name acquisition. 

Bengals weren't going to trade Trey Hendrickson at discounted price

"The Bengals were listening, as they always do, but their asking price never changed from what it has been since trade offers were gauged for Hendrickson back in March," Dehner wrote. "They wanted a first-round pick. The difference between Hendrickson and the other big fish was that he only has the rest of the season under contract. The others are solutions for the short and long haul."

Dehner was referring to how Hendrickson and the Bengals negotiated a revised deal this past summer that offered him no guarantees beyond this season. Meanwhile, ESPN stats show that Cincinnati finished Week 9 ranked last in the league in yards allowed per game (426.6) and in points surrendered per contest (33.3). These numbers suggest the Bengals probably won't achieve much by January, with or without Hendrickson.

Why Bengals "believe all is not lost" regarding 2025 season

In an article posted on Wednesday, ESPN NFL insider Dan Graziano suggested that the Bengals believe they can make a run after their Week 10 bye, despite going 1-6 without injured starting quarterback Joe Burrow (toe).   

"As devastating as the past two losses have felt for the Bengals, they have reason to believe all is not lost," Graziano shared. "They're 2.5 games behind a first-place Steelers team that is 28th in the league in total offense and has a plus-7 point differential over eight games. The Bengals have a head-to-head victory over Pittsburgh already, and both games against Baltimore (3-5) still to come, and they're averaging 38 points per game since Joe Flacco took over as their starting QB."

Burrow is reportedly expected to be out of action until at least mid-December, meaning the 40-year-old Flacco will need to keep turning back the clock until further notice if the Bengals are to stay in the playoff hunt. If Flacco comes back down to earth, Cincinnati might ultimately regret not selling Hendrickson for less than a first-round draft pick. 

The Bengals next play at the Steelers on Nov. 16. 5-3 Pittsburgh will take on the Los Angeles Chargers (6-3) at SoFi Stadium this Sunday night.