Bengals EVP Katie Blackburn made some eyebrow-raising comments about contract talks with DE Trey Hendrickson, including that “he should be happy at certain rates” and that’s one of the factors currently holding up negotiations.
Those comments got back to Hendrickson and he was predictably not happy to hear it. In an interview with The Pat McAfee Show, Hendrickson gave his response and his view on the situation.
“That was a little disappointing because communication has been poor over the last couple of months,” he said. “That’s something I hold in high regard. They have not communicated with my agent directly. It’s been a little bit frustrating.”
Hendrickson explained he and his agent were told if he had another productive season, his contract would be addressed this offseason with the long-term deal he was seeking. He said the same message was relayed at the Combine.
So far, the Bengals have not followed up their words with actions in Hendrickson’s view. He adds he doesn’t think he’s asking for anything out of line with the market and doesn’t know if there’s a deadline for a resolution.
“Three years ago I began to ask for a long-term contract with guaranteed money, so those deadlines have all been a blur. I’ve just been hunting quarterbacks,” he said via McAfee. “I don’t know if I can put a time stamp on [a resolution], and that’s where to read what I read yesterday was confusing. I would have been willing to sign three years ago, two years ago, and this year. It was communicated with me that we would get something done this year, and reiterated with Duke [Tobin]’s comments at the Combine. I kind of treat it like a house now. House values have gone up, it’s the cost of living.”
Hendrickson gave more details on the lack of communication, and hinted that holding out of OTAs is something he’s strongly considering even if he doesn’t want to do it.
“When I say that communication has been poor, I mean that it’s been here and there… When it comes to my situation, it would have been nice to know, ‘hey, we’re gonna put you in the queue,’” he said via McAfee. “We don’t have any desire to be the highest paid or first in line. We’ve tried to be as patient as possible. But when you have things like OTAs coming and guys like Sam Hubbard [retiring] who was a tremendous captain for our team last year, that leaves a vacancy. I’m excited to fill that, but how do we reach [a solution] before we get there? Those are the things that matter when you’re talking about a Super Bowl, it’s in the little things and the little details.”
He also generally declined to go into specifics about the numbers he and the team are discussing, but did say he didn’t want a lot of incentives and didn’t want a one-year deal.
Hendrickson closed by saying he preferred not to negotiate through the media but felt like he needed to speak for himself.
“I would prefer not to address these things with the media but if I’m hearing from X or whatever details about my contract that aren’t privy to me, or happiness that I’m not feeling under certain situations, then you can say respect, but respect is something I have for [HC] Zac Taylor and I take that approach every day being on time, communicating with him…all those things. There’s a mutual respect,” he said via McAfee.
“Just to say the word respect, and then actions are speaking a lot louder in a different direction, then that’s disappointing.”
Hendrickson, 30, was selected with the No. 103 overall pick by the Saints out of Florida Atlantic in 2017. He finished his four-year rookie contract worth $3,106,288, which included a signing bonus of $706,284.
Hendrickson then signed a four-year, $60 million contract with the Bengals back in 2021 and went on to appear in the Super Bowl for the team. Cincinnati signed him to a one-year extension through 2025 in 2023.
He’s due a base salary of $15.8 million in the final year of his contract in 2025.
In 2024, Hendrickson appeared in all 17 games for the Bengals and recorded 46 total tackles, 19 tackles for loss, 17.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and six pass defenses.
We’ll have more on Hendrickson as the news is available.
The post Trey Hendrickson Responds To Bengals Management Saying He Should Be “Happy At Certain Rates” appeared first on NFLTradeRumors.co.