Bengals’ Tobin: Hendrickson trade could be ‘complicated’

Ben BabyFeb 24, 2026, 07:00 PM ET

CloseBen Baby covers the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN. He joined the company in July 2019. Prior to ESPN, he worked for various newspapers in Texas, most recently at The Dallas Morning News where he covered college sports. He provides daily coverage of the Bengals for ESPN.com, while making appearances on SportsCenter, ESPN’s NFL shows and ESPN Radio programs. A native of Grapevine, Texas, he graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor’s degree in journalism. He is an adjunct journalism professor at Southern Methodist University and a member of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA).

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INDIANAPOLIS — Finding a way to trade defensive end Trey Hendrickson will not be simple for the Cincinnati Bengals.

If Cincinnati wanted to move the All-Pro pass rusher, it needs to apply the franchise tag before March 3. Otherwise, Hendrickson will be a free agent. Bengals director of player personnel Duke Tobin said like with all trades, executing this move with Hendrickson could prove challenging.

“All trades are difficult,” Tobin said at the NFL combine in Indianapolis. “You got to find a partner and you have to find somebody that you have to have some cooperation with your players that you’re talking about this with. Trades can be complicated and that hypothetical scenario would be very complicated.”

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Tobin also didn’t offer any final decision on Hendrickson’s future.

“I don’t throw anything on or off the table with Trey, and we’re excited about attacking this offseason,” Tobin said. “We have resources to attack the offseason in a big way, and we want to do that.”

For the Bengals to tag and trade Hendrickson, they need to find a trade partner who will also be willing to give the four-time Pro Bowler a new contract. Last season, Hendrickson made $29 million after receiving a raise in the final year of his contract, a move that ended a contract holdout that extended into training camp.

However, injuries kept Hendrickson from matching his previous production with the Bengals. After leading the NFL with 17.5 sacks in 2024, Hendrickson had four sacks in seven games before ending the year on injured reserve because of a core muscle injury that eventually required surgery.

“Trey’s been a great player for us,” said Tobin of Hendrickson, who has been with the team since signing as a free agent in 2021. “He didn’t have the year he wanted this year. We didn’t have the year we wanted this year. Those are factors and we’ll see where we go from there.

“But in terms of how we’re gonna deploy the tag, if we are going to, that’s not something I’m gonna talk about here.”

The need to improve the team’s pass rush has been a main conversation topic throughout the offseason. Cincinnati coach Zac Taylor reiterated that in his comments inside the Indianapolis Convention Center on Tuesday. Taylor, the lone tenured coach returning in the AFC North, said adding defensive ends in free agency is also a potential option.

“There is a good group of guys,” Taylor said of the prospective pass rushers the team could sign in March. “We’ll see how it fits for us and see where it goes. You watch the playoffs and the teams get after the passer and it’s a big part of their success.”

Tobin, Taylor and the Bengals have received ample criticism following a 6-11 season and the third straight year without a playoff appearance. But despite those struggles, Tobin is optimistic about what the team could accomplish in 2026.

“Do I think that we can make additions this offseason that push us over the hump?” Tobin said. “I do.”