The Cincinnati Bengals agreed to terms with former New Orleans Saints defensive end Trey Hendrickson to a four-year contract.
Trey Hendrickson will reunite with safety Vonn Bell who was a New Orleans Saint from 2016-2019 before joining the Bengals last season.
The power of Trey Hendrickson on this sack 👀#ATLvsNO | 📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/KbQ4SL8ytb
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) November 22, 2020
Hendrickson’s deal will be finalized on March 17 when the new NFL year officially begins.
Bengals, DE Trey Hendrickson agree to four-year, $60 million deal. (via @RapSheet) pic.twitter.com/PmJHzBHPps
— NFL (@NFL) March 16, 2021
Trey Hendrickson, 26, had a monstrous 2020 season, perfectly timed to collect a big payday as a free agent.
Despite his accomplishments in 2020, the Bengals did overpay him.
Trey Hendrickson Had One Good Season.
The #Bengals are signing DE Trey Hendrickson to a four-year, $60 million contract with $32 million in the first two years, per source. Huge deal for one of last season's breakout stars. 💰💰
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 16, 2021
As mentioned above, he played outstanding football in 2020 but was very mediocre the first three years of his NFL career.
Hendrickson flew under the radar for those first three seasons.
Drafted in the 3rd round (103rd overall), he had a forced fumble, 22 solo tackles, and 25 quarterback hits in 2020.
He also had 13.5 quarterback sacks which tied him for second in the NFL with Aaron Donald.
As a result, he was named first-team All-Pro in 2020.
He Had A Low Dollar Rookie Contract.
His rookie contract was valued at $3.17 million over four years.
Spotrac estimated the market value of his new contract to be $30.9 million over three years.
Using Spotrac’s number, his contract should have been around $10 million annually.
The Bengals are paying him $15 million each year; they overpaid him for what his previous performance was.
Perhaps the Bengals believe he is a player on the rise and are paying for what is to come; it is anyone’s guess.
The Bengals Were Not Even Reportedly In The Running Recently.
Here is another example where rumors are not always correct.
The New York Jets kept coming up on the recent short list for Trey Hendrickson.
Other interested teams included the Minnesota Vikings and Cleveland Browns.
The Bengals were mentioned about a month ago along with the Patriots.
Hendrickson joining the Bengals became less of a surprise when it was clear that they were not planning to re-sign Carl Lawson whom they drafted in 2017 in the 4th round (116th overall).
Replacing Carl Lawson
The Bengals did not re-sign one of their best defensive players.
He was defensive end Carl Lawson.
For the #Jets and Carl Lawson: 3 years, $45M with $30M guaranteed. Up to $47.4M. Huge deal. https://t.co/JbL2TsViT0
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 16, 2021
Lawson is reportedly signing with the Jets for a three year deal worth $47.4 million.
On Pro Football Focus’s free agent ranking list, Lawson came in at 30th whereas Hendrickson was 67th.
Carl Lawson vs Trey Hendrickson
A thread:Pass rush grade:
Carl (84.9) ✅ – Trey (78.0)Pass-rush win rate
Carl (20.0%) ✅ – Trey (15.5%)Pressure rate
Carl (15.4%) ✅ – Trey (14.4%)Cleanup + unblocked pressures
Carl (11) ✅ – Trey (18)— Andrew Russell (@PFF_AndrewR) March 16, 2021
The dollars and cents do not add up on what the Bengals paid and for whom, but perhaps it will make more sense when Hendrickson hits the field in 2021 as a Cincinnati Bengal.
NEXT: 3 Biggest Draft Needs For Cincinnati Bengals In 2021