Bengals’ Joe Burrow Reveals Reaction to Trey Hendrickson’s Ravens Contract in NFL Free Agency

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow steered Wednesday that he wasn’t caught off guard by former teammate Trey Hendrickson’s choice to signal with the rival Baltimore Ravens in free company this offseason.

Burrow told reporters he felt the transfer was “not very surprising,” earlier than including, “I know Trey, I love Trey. I just know how he operates.”

After spending the previous 5 seasons in Cincinnati, Hendrickson inked a four-year, $112 million cope with the Ravens in March.

On the heels of a four-year run with the New Orleans Saints, Hendrickson joined the Bengals in 2021, and he proceeded to set up himself as one of many high pass-rushers in the league.

Hendrickson was named a Pro Bowler in every of his first 4 seasons in Cincy, plus he earned First Team All-Pro honors and completed second in NFL Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2024 when he led the league with 17.5 sacks.

Prior to the 2024 and 2025 seasons, Hendrickson pushed for a long-term contract extension with the Bengals, however nothing ever got here to fruition.

He restructured the ultimate yr of his cope with the Bengals final season at a wage of $29 million, however he grew to become free and clear to signal elsewhere as soon as his contract expired on the conclusion of the 2025 marketing campaign.

After averaging over 14 sacks per yr in his first 4 seasons with the Bengals, Hendrickson’s manufacturing dipped to solely 4 sacks final season due largely to the truth that he was restricted to seven video games due to a hip and pelvis harm that required core muscle surgical procedure.

The Ravens initially agreed to a commerce to purchase star pass-rusher Maxx Crosby from the Las Vegas Raiders, however when Crosby failed his bodily, the deal was nixed.

Baltimore moved rapidly to deal with its pass-rushing want by signing the 31-year-old Hendrickson into free company.

Signing Hendrickson helped the Ravens and damage a rival in the Bengals, though Cincinnati did handle to exchange Hendrickson with former Seattle Seahawks pass-rusher Boye Mafe.

As lengthy as each gamers keep wholesome, Burrow and Hendrickson will face one another a minimum of twice in the course of the 2026 season, and Burrow steered that he’s wanting ahead to it, telling reporters“It’ll definitely be fun.”