Nearly $10M Gap Between Trey Hendrickson’s Asking Price & Interested Teams?

Free agent DE Trey Hendrickson is among the top options left on the market, as it was reported teams are yet to meet his asking price on a contract.

CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones says the gap between interested teams and Hendrickson is close to $10 million per year. Jones thinks teams who aren’t in on Hendrickson right now could become interested if his price drops to align more with how the market values him.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Hendrickson is seeking a deal around $30 million annually after what Jaelan Phillips and Danielle Hunter were paid. It doesn’t sound like teams are willing to pay Hendrickson that much, and they more likely view him in the low $20 million range per year. 

Hendrickson, 31, was selected with the No. 103 overall pick by the Saints out of Florida Atlantic in 2017. He finished his four-year rookie contract worth $3,106,288, which included a signing bonus of $706,284.

Hendrickson then signed a four-year, $60 million contract with the Bengals back in 2021 and went on to appear in the Super Bowl for the team. Cincinnati signed him to a one-year extension through 2025 in 2023. 

He was due a base salary of $15.8 million in the final year of his contract in 2025 when he and the team agreed to a $14 million raise to resolve a holdout. 

In 2025, Hendrickson appeared in seven games for the Bengals, recording 16 total tackles, four sacks, one forced fumble, and a pass deflection.

We have him included in our Top 100 – 2026 NFL Free Agents.