Orlando Brown Jr. sends a message to Trey Hendrickson after Bengals make their next free agency splash
Cincinnati extended Orlando Brown Jr.’s contract through the 2028 season.
The Cincinnati Bengals have extended left tackle Orlando Brown Jr.’s contract through the 2028 season.
Per Cincinnati.com’s Kelsey Conway, Brown is getting an additional $32 million in new money, with $23 million coming in the next 12 months.
Brown was set to enter the last year of his four-year, $64 million contract he signed back in 2023, and is now locked in as Cincinnati’s starting LT for the next three seasons including 2026.
That’s potentially three more years of Brown playing against his first NFL team, the Baltimore Ravens, and their newest defensive end, former Bengals Pro Bowler Trey Hendrickson.
Orlando Brown Jr. excited to lock in against Trey Hendrickson beyond this season
Baltimore sent shockwaves throughout the NFL this week by rescinding the Maxx Crosby trade and agreeing to terms with Hendrickson a mere 13 hours later. The move gives Cincinnati’s division rival a great pass rusher without the cost of sacrificing two first-round picks.
And it’s not just any great pass rusher, it’s the dominant source of pass rushing production from the Bengals since 2021.
Hendrickson taking a deal with the Ravens certainly has fans feeling a certain way, but there doesn’t seem to be any love lost with Brown.
“I think it’s great,” Brown said of Hendrickson’s deal. “I think it’s great. He earned that contract. It’s a great situation for him, and we get to see him twice a year.”
Brown and Hendrickson practiced against each other for the past three years, and last played against each other in the 2023 AFC Championship Game when Brown was on the winning sideline for the Kansas City Chiefs. Those battles outside of practice will resume later this year.
“It’ll be a lot of fun,” Brown said. “We’ve had a lot of battles over the years and some really big games when I was in Kansas City, so it’ll be a lot of fun.”
How Brown’s extension came together
Despite Hendrickson’s sudden move to the DMV, Brown’s deal didn’t just come together in an instant to counter it. The 29-year old said talks began in early February, and he represented himself.
“I just wanted to present it to them, and I didn’t know if that was going to get done in August or July,” Brown said. “We just so happened to find a number that we settled on pretty early.”
By knocking it out in March instead of having it linger into the summer, Brown can gave his mind on what matters to him and the rest of the team with two matchups against Hendrickson packed in a season with significant stakes.
“It was important to me because I just want to be able to focus on ball,” Brown said. “And, you know, having that security there, just in terms of the number of years that I’m here, it allows me to just focus on that. And, you know, my main reason for wanting to get this deal done too, is I just want to win, you know. And I think it’s one less thing on my plate, one less thing on their plate.”
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