Trey Hendrickson is still not getting the contract he wants from the Cincinnati Bengals and now, the bleep has hit the fan... again. Ian Rapoport reported on Sunday that "With contract talks at an impasse, the #Bengals are listening to trade offers for perennial Pro Bowler Trey Hendrickson, per me & @TomPelissero.
It’s unclear if the NFL sack leader will be playing elsewhere in 2025, and a trade will be a real challenge. But time will tell."
This is obviously not good news for the Bengals but it's excellent news for the Indianapolis Colts. Not only because Hendrickson is on the trade block once again but because they're continuing to be linked as a team that has "shown interest", according to Jordan Schultz, who also said, "Cincinnati is believed to want an impact player (or two) plus a draft pick in return."
The Colts should do whatever it takes to land Hendrickson, however, because he could very well be the missing piece on the defensive side of the ball. He'd make a lot of sense with this team too given that his old defensive coordinator, Lou Anarumo, is now running the show on defense in Indianapolis.
Colts emerge as Trey Hendrickson suitor and fans can see exactly why
Not only is Hendrickson an absolute menace for opposing offensive lines to deal with but if the Colts can reunite him with the guy who brought out the best in him for multiple years, why not do it? He can be a wrecking ball on defense and there's no doubt he'd make this team better.
Of course, Schultz noted that the Bengals would want an impact player and a draft pick in return for Hendrickson but the closer we get to the start of the season, the less likely it is they're going to get that. Do they want to risk Hendrickson not playing for them and getting nothing in return?
Colts fans should be thankful that the Bengals front office has fumbled this situation because it opens the door for Indy to swoop in and try to make a trade for Hendrickson. The Bengals star pass-rusher has tallied 17.5 sacks in back-to-back seasons and had 13.5 and 14.0 sacks in 2020 and 2021 respectively.
The one knock on Hendrickson is that he's 30 years old and will turn 31 in December. That's the reason the Bengals have hesitated to pay him the money he's asking for because they're very much against paying guys when they're 30 or close to 30.
Reuniting Hendrickson with Anarumo might be too tempting for the Colts to resist and who could blame them? There's no doubt that he'd make them a better team and isn't that what needs to happen? Go big or go home.