Multiple Bengals players subtly hint at what Cincinnati plans to do next after taking care of Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins
Cincinnati Bengals wide receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins are going to sign their four-year contracts on Tuesday. The goal is for defensive end Trey Hendrickson to follow suit in the coming days. The morning after news broke about Chase and Higgins' deals being done, multiple reports surfaced that the Bengals were moving on to […]
Cincinnati Bengals wide receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins are going to sign their four-year contracts on Tuesday. The goal is for defensive end Trey Hendrickson to follow suit in the coming days.
The morning after news broke about Chase and Higgins' deals being done, multiple reports surfaced that the Bengals were moving on to getting an extension for Hendrickson on the books.
It's not even been two weeks since the Bengals granted Hendrickson's camp permission to seek a trade. Since then, it's been reported that the Bengals were seeking a first-round pick in return for their All-Pro 30-year old pass rusher, a price that has not been accepted by any suitor.
The Bengals listened to offers, but if they're not going to get what they want, then it makes all the sense in the world to come back to the table and try to work out a deal. Attractive free agent options to potentially replace Hendrickson have already been claimed by other teams, and any Day 2 draft pick they could receive in a trade isn't likely to net anywhere close to the level of production one could expect from Hendrickson.
It's in the interest of both sides to work something out instead of forcing Hendrickson to play on his original deal, and judging by a couple of his teammates, there seems to be a decent chance of something happening here.
Bengals players tease Hendrickson's extension
Soon after reports started reaching the national spotlight, second-year cornerback Josh "Fig" Newton sent out a post on X/Twitter that caught plenty of attention.
91 being the jersey number Hendrickson wears, Newton successfully teased plenty of Bengals fans early in the morning. Defensive end Cam Sample followed suit just two hours later.
There's been no official indication that the Bengals are within striking distance of a deal with Hendrickson, but his own teammates may be confident for the right reason. The club has known what the financials for Chase and Higgins were going to be last week. Once that became set in stone, they gained a clear picture of how much they can afford to offer Hendrickson in the form of a raise and extension.
This could take a week or so to really iron out if there is indeed positive momentum, or it could take a few days. Whatever the case may be, there certainly appears to be a lot more optimism in a deal actually happening, which could not be said just 10 days ago.
Cincinnati is still keeping tabs on the free agent guard market and will likely make a push once there is movement there again. In the meantime, plenty of the front office's focus will be communicating with Hendrickson to reach a compromise and fulfill Joe Burrow's offseason wishlist.
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