The standoff between the Cincinnati Bengals and edge rusher Trey Hendrickson continues with mandatory minicamp right around the corner.
Hendrickson has been present at the voluntary portion of offseason workouts, but he has not taken part as he looks for a new deal.
The first time Hendrickson is required to be present is at mandatory minicamp, which for the Bengals begins on June 10.
In one of his many public comments expressing frustration with the Bengals, the four-time Pro Bowler revealed that the team told him he would be fined if he skipped the first mandatory portion of the offseason program.
“We’ve tried to keep it as least amount as personal as possible, but at some point in this process it’s becomes personal,” Hendrickson said, per ESPN. “Being sent 30 days before mandatory camp, or how many ever days it is, that if I don’t show up I will be fined alludes to the fact that something won’t get done in that time frame.”
The Bengals reportedly have an offer on the table for Hendrickson that pays him about $28 million annually, per Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, but clearly Hendrickson isn’t interested.
So, what might he be looking for?
Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer estimates that Hendrickson wants a deal that pays him like fellow edge rushers Maxx Crosby of the Las Vegas Raiders and Danielle Hunter of the Houston Texans.
Crosby is at $35.5 million per year and Hunter is at $35.6 million annually, and they rank third and second behind Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns, respectively.
“Meanwhile, the market has materially changed. Hendrickson may not be the sort of war daddy pass rusher such as Myles Garrett and Nick Bosa, who both demanded market-changing deals,” Breer wrote.
“But Hendrickson did have 35 sacks the past two years, so he’s more than within reason to expect to get where Danielle Hunter and Maxx Crosby did this offseason, somewhere around $35 million per year.”
Hendrickson is certainly worthy of a near top-of-the-market deal. Not only did he lead the NFL in sacks last season with 17.5, but his 35 over the past two seasons leads the league, also.
Sure, he’s set to turn 31 in December, but he’s also still playing at a very high level and is crucial to the Bengals’ chances of improving their defense. He also has the numbers to justify getting big money.
Not paying Hendrickson is even more inexcusable when you consider that Cincy had no issue shelling out big money for wide receiver Tee Higgins, who isn’t anywhere near as valuable as Hendrickson is.
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