Sportsnaut
The Cincinnati Bengals and edge rusher Trey Hendrickson are at a standoff. Hendrickson has been seeking a new contract from the team since the beginning of the offseason, but there has been little movement on an extension.
With Hendrickson and the Bengals still far apart on an extension, the team has decided to begin listening to trade offers for the All-Pro defender. There are a plethora of franchises that would be willing to give up premium assets for Hendrickson, and it sounds like the New England Patriots are one of them.
Patriots general manager Eliot Wolf spoke to the media on Monday, and stated that New England would be willing to give up a first or second round pick for a player who would help them this season.
“Eliot Wolf says the Patriots would be willing to give up a 1st or 2nd round pick to make their team better this season,” Tom Carroll of WEEI 93.7 FM said on X.
“Sure – just doing what’s best for the team. If there’s a player out there that we feel like can help us and it costs that, then we would consider doing that,” Wolf said via Carroll on X.
The Patriots could use a game-changing pass rusher on Terrell Williams’ defense. Hendrickson would be exactly that and much more. The 30-year-old has tallied 17.5 sacks in each of the last two seasons and came second in AP Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2024.
New England is willing to give up the draft capital for a player like Hendrickson, and the team also has $59 million in cap space, meaning they have the money to sign a premium player to a new deal.
With Drake Maye on a rookie contract, the Patriots should take big swings and build the best possible roster around the 2024 No.3 overall pick. Adding Hendrickson to the defense would greatly increase the playoff chances for Mike Vrabel’s squad.
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