It’s no secret that the Green Bay Packers could use another pass-rusher.
Green Bay has been on a mission for multiple years to find a suitable running mate with Rashan Gary, but that has yet to happen. The expectation is that Lukas Van Ness will get the first crack at the starting right end job, but the first two years of his career have not gone well.
Green Bay’s overall depth behind Gary at defensive end is unproven and lacks high-talent, which is why they’ve been connected to multiple pass-rushers via trade all offseason. But they just may have received a lifeline here in the middle of July.
Trey Hendrickson, the All-Pro pass rusher from Cincinnati, did not report to training camp with the Bengals on Tuesday. He continues to hold out as he is searching for a long-term deal after posting back-to-back 17.5 sack seasons. The Bengals want to give him an extension but have not been able to come to terms with their best defensive player.
While Bengals’ owner Mike Brown expressed optimism on Monday that a deal would get done soon, the fact that Hendrickson did not arrive on Tuesday and is in Florida indicates that they are still a long way away. And the longer this drags into training camp, the more likely a trade becomes.
Packers would become NFC North favorites by making a deal for Trey Hendrickson
The Packers don’t have a ton of cap space available in 2026 ($15.2 million, per OverTheCap.com), but there are always ways to free up room to sign high-end players. Green Bay has been searching for a player like Hendrickson for years and would be able to restructure some deals to make him fit under the cap.
The only question is what would it take for the Bengals to accept a trade for Hendrickson? A future first-round pick seems like too much for a 30-year-old pass rusher who needs a new deal, but a conditional Day 2 pick along with some other draft capital might make sense. The Bengals have allowed Hendrickson to explore the trade market in the past, but nothing ever materialized.
Time will tell if Hendrickson ultimately gets dealt, but you can bet on him earning a new deal from some team that will make him one of the league’s highest-paid pass rushers. And with Hendrickson now officially a holdout in Cincinnati, it is time to strike, as the Packers could completely change the outlook of their defense with a trade.
The acquisition of Hendrickson would make them the favorites in the NFC North, which is precisely why they need to be aggressive in pursuing this trade.