The Cincinnati Bengals have had a rough offseason, but that seems to be something they are familiar with, at least in recent years. The Bengals seem to always be in contract disputes, as we recently saw with wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. However, it is now a defensive player seeking a contract. That player is Trey Hendrickson, who is coming off a 17.5 sack season and a first-team All-Pro nod. We will likely not see him back practicing with the Bengals until a deal is finalized. The inability to finalize contracts early has hurt the Bengals, which is what makes them one of the losers of the offseason.
According to Bleacher Report, the Bengals are losers because they have yet to re-sign Hendrickson. “The Cincinnati Bengals had one of the NFL’s most explosive offenses last year. But the team missed the playoffs, largely because of a leaky defense that ranked 25th in the NFL.”
To be a successful defense in today’s NFL, you must be able to rush the passer. That is why Hendrickson is such a valuable player. Outside of Hendrickson, the Bengals have yet to sign first-round draft pick Shemar Stewart to his rookie contract. That should be cause for concern because rookie deals are often easy to negotiate, as each player has a specific pay scale based on where they were picked.
For some reason, the Bengals attempted to insert a new clause into Stewart’s contract, which neither he nor his agent is willing to accept. That means Cincinnati is without two of its best pass rushers before the season has even begun. We have seen contract situations go sour if they are not handled quickly. The Bengals better hope that does not happen to them, or they could be in massive trouble on defense.