Hendrickson, Higgins, and Chase

[cincygrad]

At this point you would take that? Lol.

He's over 30 on the last year of his contract and wanting huge money or he'll hold out....

As a Lions fan I'm only reading this thread for news about how talks are going. I'd absolutely love Hendrickson on the Lions, but I wouldn't even give up a first for him. At least not without getting something back.

But why not? The Lions are a contender. They were the best team in the league for much of last season and were basically undone by injuries. If you're the Lions you could give up a low first rounder for a guy that has been among the best pass rushers in the league for the past 3 seasons. It would hedge against Hutch recovering slowly and the two of them would be a force in the postseason. What are you going to get at the end of the first round that's going to help as much? Does it sacrifice the future a little? Sure.... But this is a team that's never been to the Super Bowl. If I was a Lions fan, I'd give up a piece of the future for putting all the chips in on this team right now.

 

[Cincyfan78]

At this point you would take that? Lol.

He's over 30 on the last year of his contract and wanting huge money or he'll hold out....

As a Lions fan I'm only reading this thread for news about how talks are going. I'd absolutely love Hendrickson on the Lions, but I wouldn't even give up a first for him. At least not without getting something back.

I mean - a 1st and a 3rd is more then reasonable for a known quantity that has 35 sacks over the past 2 years. If you are wanting to hedge against him being 30, then that really sides more with the Bengals point than it does Trey...and further proves their own point.

Garrett was talked about, before being signed, with MULTIPLE high level picks. While Trey isn't quite Garrett, he also isn't far off.

Lastly, the Bengals hold all the cards. He's under contract, and they can still tag him next year. He'll turn 31 this year. Long-term, I don't see sitting out as a viable option. This isn't a young guy in his prime, it's an aging veteran who may be at the peak and likely coming down off that peak over season 2-3 and 4, if applicable.

Trey has said he doesn't want Garrett type money - and I agree that the Bengals should give some leeway to signing him. That said, to get rid of a guy that has produced 35 sacks over the past 2 seasons is going to cost draft capital. The fact that the other team is going to have to sign him long-term really isn't the Bengals' issue - that's the issue for the new team.

So, loathe as I am to side with the owners on this - they hold more of the cards and better options than Trey does at the moment. We'll see how this plays out - but if he's not signed by the draft, and they do NOT take a DE in round 1 ... suffice it to say, IMO, they will go to camp with Trey. Now, whether he'll be there (likely not for camp) is another story. In the end, though, I don't see him sitting out much of the regular season, it just doesn't bode well for him personally or his long-term future.

 

[Cincyfan78]

I'm sure this has been shared before - and I didn't want to start a new thread, so I put this in here with other WR's....

Cincinnati Bengals legendary WR Chad Johnson used to call HC Marvin Lewis and other coaches at two in the morning to tell them he was "open": You know I used to call him and Marvin in the middle of the night. Coach, I'm open and hang up."

 

[CrashDavisSports]

I'm sure this has been shared before - and I didn't want to start a new thread, so I put this in here with other WR's....

Cincinnati Bengals legendary WR Chad Johnson used to call HC Marvin Lewis and other coaches at two in the morning to tell them he was "open": You know I used to call him and Marvin in the middle of the night. Coach, I'm open and hang up."

Good thing Marvin was so nice. I would have been benching him that week if he did that to me.

 

[Cincyfan78]

Good thing Marvin was so nice. I would have been benching him that week if he did that to me.

Would have had to put him on block from like 6pm until 6am...lol

 

[CrashDavisSports]

Would have had to put him on block from like 6pm until 6am...lol

He would have been a Patriot a lot sooner if I was the coach and he was doing that nonsense. haha

 

[cincygrad]

https://x.com/Jason_OTC/status/1919704355290181720

Stone takes a pay cut. I don't know what is more sad - The Bengals holding onto two bad FA pick-ups last year in Moss and Stone - Or Moss and Stone being so desparate to stay on a roster that they willingly cut salary for a guaranteed pay check in the prime of their career. Really tells you something about their market value though.

Meanwhile, either the Blackburns have now found every dime they needed to pay the two receivers they didn't want to pay at the same time and they can move on with their profits. Or these nickles and dimes will contribute to a more competitive below-market deal for the NFL's sack leader.

Big business going on down by the river. Who-Dey!!

 

[Cincyfan78]

https://x.com/Jason_OTC/status/1919704355290181720

Stone takes a pay cut. I don't know what is more sad - The Bengals holding onto two bad FA pick-ups last year in Moss and Stone - Or Moss and Stone being so desparate to stay on a roster that they willingly cut salary for a guaranteed pay check in the prime of their career. Really tells you something about their market value though.

Meanwhile, either the Blackburns have now found every dime they needed to pay the two receivers they didn't want to pay at the same time and they can move on with their profits. Or these nickles and dimes will contribute to a more competitive below-market deal for the NFL's sack leader.

Big business going on down by the river. Who-Dey!!

Yeah, I mean - it comes down to a conversation that likely goes like this:

"Bengals: So, you were terrible last year. You can either restructure and take a cut, or you can just be outright cut. Up to you".

"Player: I'll take a reduction".

Yeah, at this point, finding a landing spot AND getting paid isn't likely to happen - especially for Moss who is coming off a pretty solid neck injury...So, you take your lump, remain on the roster and hope you get a chance to show what you can do. Even if it doesn't 100% work out for the player, hitting the F/A market early will pay a lot more than getting cut at this juncture.

 

[Cincyfan78]

To add, though...this move coupled the move on Moss has freed up $3.2M. If you end up releasing Pratt, which is expected, you save another $5.8M. That's $9M. If you really feel comfortable with the IOL room, with the draft pick, 1 F/A and a few guys coming back from injury...you could let Volson walk for another $3.6. Now you're looking at just under $13M in savings/cap/cash.

Could take $10M of that toward Trey, and maybe still look to get a guy like Risner - just give him $3M, likely a bit less than he'd like, but you could just guarantee the entire $3M for this year.

 

[cincygrad]

To add, though...this move coupled the move on Moss has freed up $3.2M. If you end up releasing Pratt, which is expected, you save another $5.8M. That's $9M. If you really feel comfortable with the IOL room, with the draft pick, 1 F/A and a few guys coming back from injury...you could let Volson walk for another $3.6. Now you're looking at just under $13M in savings/cap/cash.

Could take $10M of that toward Trey, and maybe still look to get a guy like Risner - just give him $3M, likely a bit less than he'd like, but you could just guarantee the entire $3M for this year.

I certainly agree that freeing up this kind of cash should allow you to sign a guard and to extend Trey. I think my point is that they could have done both of those things AND signed the deals they did with Tee and Ja'Marr without making these moves. They still have more than 20 million in available cap now - And that is with Trey on the books without a restructure. They intentionally absorbed more on the cap from the Higgins, Chase and Gisecki deals than they needed to absorb. And they could restructure Burrow anytime they feel like it. They aren't serious about winning.

It all comes back to money. They do now want to allocate more cash than what comes in that television deal. Almost any reputable person that I have seen analyze the Bengals financial situation has acknowledged that they aren't as liquid as the big boys, but that they have plenty in cash reserves to make all of this happen. They choose not to. And they try to sell a fanbase on the idea that there is some pride in being the league leaders in least amount of dead cap.... And that they are building for a future that never gets here.

 

[cincygrad]

As for Stone and Moss..... I suppose they deserve a second shot. Stone particularly given that we have a big need there. I don't understand the Moss move - Once you signed Perine, you added a veteran presence. The rookie gives them some youth. But honestly, for both players, you are banking more on hope than you are on logic to believe that they will be better.

 

[cincygrad]

One more comment about Stone - I assume he sees he addition of Golden as a big help to his usage with the team. If I'm him, after the way last season went, I'm not sure I want to come back. He was much better in Baltimore and a second season of sucking really hurts his career at this point. So maybe he does feel like he was held back by Lou's system. That's what you have to hope if you're a Bengal fan, because otherwise we might be in some trouble at the position.

 

[Cincyfan78]

One more comment about Stone - I assume he sees he addition of Golden as a big help to his usage with the team. If I'm him, after the way last season went, I'm not sure I want to come back. He was much better in Baltimore and a second season of sucking really hurts his career at this point. So maybe he does feel like he was held back by Lou's system. That's what you have to hope if you're a Bengal fan, because otherwise we might be in some trouble at the position.

He had a really nice back-end of the season once Lou finally started playing a more basic style of defense to allow for the younger guys who had to be on the field. Once Stone was allowed to play more coverage/Free in that safety position/back end...he produced fairly well.

But, taking a "Cut me, trade me" stance at this point doesn't really work well for the player (when you are a fringe player like Stone/Moss). Getting cut not only saves MORE money for the team, but then you are stuck in a really bad situation as teams have not only gone through F/A at this point, but also the draft. You likely end up with a bad contract, and a bad roster spot/situation. It sucks taking a cut, but it also ensure you stay on a team that has some upward trajectory. Not just with a new DC, but also because you have Burrow, Chase, Higgins and Brown on the other side of the ball...that's going to win you a lot of games.

 

[DanBengalfan]

Trey Hendrickson reportedly has "no interest" in playing for Bengals under current deal

The contract standoff between the Bengals and Trey Hendrickson does not appear to be ending anytime soon...

www.cincyjungle.com

 

[CrashDavisSports]

Trey Hendrickson reportedly has "no interest" in playing for Bengals under current deal

The contract standoff between the Bengals and Trey Hendrickson does not appear to be ending anytime soon...

www.cincyjungle.com

Yep. Read that the other day. Good times.

 

[Cincyfan78]

Trey Hendrickson reportedly has "no interest" in playing for Bengals under current deal

The contract standoff between the Bengals and Trey Hendrickson does not appear to be ending anytime soon...

www.cincyjungle.com

I read this. This is a LOT of conjecture by the writer. He's ASSUMING on his own accord. He has zero inside information.

In fact, there is another article I read this morning, that the Bengals and Hendrickson have been talking. So, while I get how this looks to the outside, you simply can't write an article, and pass it off as almost a fact, when in reality - the writer is throwing shit against the wall to see what sticks.

 

[Cincyfan78]

Yep. Read that the other day. Good times.

As I just replied above - read it, don't think the writer has any particular clue what is actually happening. He's writing from the outside looking in and passing it off as almost a fact.

Not a fan of of this kind of "journalism" or team coverage.

 

[cincygrad]

Well, part of this is obvious. Trey is not going to report to training camp on his current 1-year deal. I don't think there is any reason to believe he would. It was different last year when there was still 2 years left. Even if he did eventually cave, he wouldn't do it until the season started. So, there really isn't any news.

Knowing the Bengals, they won't budge until the season gets closer. They have to win every dea - And they don't mind waiting. It's not a great look, but I don't believe Trey's role on the team has much to do with the development of others..... It's not like having one of your key offensive guys hold out.

 

[BKBroiler9000]

In other news the Bengals are apparently the only franchise in the NFL that doesn’t guarantee the injury waiver for rookies at rookie camp prior to contract signing.

This was the reason Shemar Stewart and Demetrius Knight sat out the other day.

Another stellar look for the Brown family. Nothing but good vibes headed into the summer once again.

 

[CrashDavisSports]

In other news the Bengals are apparently the only franchise in the NFL that doesn’t guarantee the injury waiver for rookies at rookie camp prior to contract signing.

This was the reason Shemar Stewart and Demetrius Knight sat out the other day.

Another stellar look for the Brown family. Nothing but good vibes headed into the summer once again.

I don't blame them at all. I would have sat out too. I wouldn't have wanted to, but that non-guarantee would have prevented me from doing it. Too much risk. Dumb ass front office. Let's not get your top two picks into camp to see how they work with your coaches and other players so we can hold off paying guys we are pretty much assured to be paying anyways within a month. Ridiculous.