The Indianapolis Colts have been desperately holding out hope that they might be able to snag superstar pass rusher Trey Hendrickson from the Cincinnati Bengals. Not only has he made it clear that he wants to leave Cincinnati, there has been the lure of his former defensive coordinator, Lou Anarumo, waiting for him in Indianapolis to recommend signing with the Colts.
Unfortunately for the Colts, the Bengals seem to be playing hardball - and Hendrickson, for his part, has not been shy about expressing his frustrations over the situation. Those frustrations reached a boiling point on the Pat McAfee Show, where Hendrickson exploded.
"When I say that communication has been poor I mean that it's been here and there..
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) April 2, 2025
We don't have any desire to be the highest paid and we've tried to be as patient as possible"
Trey Hendrickson #PMSLive https://t.co/SMzJL6gWFD pic.twitter.com/p53eUYt7TJ
"Whenever we have something resolved in my family, my wife and I, we discuss it, and we get to a point where we know we're reaching a decision. I've been open and transparent about however it looks for me in Cincinnati or not. I want the Bengals to benefit from that," he began.
"Through this process, communication, when I say it's been poor... it's been like, here and there. And respect to Ja'Marr and Tee. I don't want to take anything away from all the great things they've accomplished in their careers. They deserve everything that they've gotten, and no doubt in my mind, they're going to excel in the National Football League. I have a tremendous respect for both of them. But when it comes to my situation, it would have been nice to know in some ways, like, 'Hey, we're gonna put you in the queue.' No problem with me. My wife and I try to be as humble as possible, as Christ-loving people. So we don't have any desires of being highest paid or first in line. We try to be as patient as possible when you have things like OTAs coming and guys like Sam Hubbard, who's a tremendous captain for our team last year, that leaves a vacancy for that, and I'm excited to fill that. But how do we reach that before we get there? And those are the things that matter when you're talking about a Super Bowl, it's in the little things. in the little details."
It's not the only time he's blasted the Bengals in recent days, either; when Bengals executive vice president Katie Blackburn publicly announced that he should be happy with the money available, he clapped back then, too.
It's hard to say how the Bengals will react to these latest comments from Hendrickson, or what his intentions are in stating them. Is he hoping to spur Cincinnati into action, and get a better deal? Or is he hoping to solidify the chances of a trade to another team... like, say, Indianapolis?
Either way, for now, it seems like the Colts' meager hopes of seeing Hendrickson in blue are still, for now, alive.