The Super Bowl is less than a fortnight away, and until the day comes, we’ve all but free agency to talk about. One of the teams exploring the market is the Cincinnati Bengals, as it becomes plain that Trey Hendrickson will find another home. But perhaps the Bengals may not have to look for long. Because there’s a prospect linked to him. 

“Even at 32, [Jadeveon] Clowney showed he can get after the passer and stop the run at a high level,” predicted Zachary Pereles of CBS Sports. “The Bengals very much need both.” 

In 2025, Jadeveon Clowney proved he still has plenty left in the tank, leading the Cowboys in sacks with 8.5 in just nine games, along with 41 tackles (24 solo). Unlike many pure speed rushers, Clowney remains among the league’s elite edge setters. And if the 2025 season has been any evidence, that saw one of the league-worst 6.2 yards per play, there’s a necessity for an edge setter. 

However, if Cincinnati were to take action, it would have to move fast. Because the Cowboys (of course), Seahawks, and 49ers are also said to be interested in Clowney. 

Fortunately, bringing Clowney onboard might not cost them a dime. According to Spotrac, he’s expected to land a $5.7 million, one-year deal in free agency. In such a case, there would still be plenty of room in the Bengals’ cap space ($69 million) to address other holes. 

They would attain another boost if Trey Hendrickson is released. 

The writing has been on the wall for Hendrickson since his second trade request last offseason. The front office even reworked his contract for 2025, giving him a $14 million raise. But the season was marred by an injury that limited him to just seven games. Together, these events have left both parties ready to move on. 

Technically, the Bengals could use the franchise tag again, which would cost them around $36 million for 2026. However, consensus among insiders such as ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler is that the “relationship has run its course.” 

“I don’t know what the future holds for Trey,” said the Bengals’ de facto GM, Duke Tobin, earlier this month. “Those are discussions that we’re going to have to have ongoing. He’s one of a number of free agents that we have that we’ll have to decide how we’re going to go forward with.”

It remains to be seen how exactly this discussion will pan out. But Tobin, too, believes the Bengals need to bring in “some from external sources” for their defense to rise above the league’s worst. 

Letting the 31-year-old walk allows Cincinnati to avoid a massive cap hit while potentially netting a 2027 compensatory pick. 

For a moment, fans thought Cincinnati would have an even bigger dilemma, or rather a crisis, this offseason with trade rumors swirling around Joe Burrow. But his stance has been cleared. 

Joe Burrow trade rumors shut down

As we know, the world of the NFL is always hungry for quarterback drama, especially involving a player of Burrow’s stature. These stories tend to quickly take on a life of their own. But his teammate, Chase Brown, dismissed all those stories and confirmed: Burrow is staying put. 

“Joe’s not going anywhere,” Brown stated. “I think that was totally blown out of proportion. It was definitely a good talking point for people… It gave the media a lot to talk about and probably made [Burrow’s] Twitter notifications go off, but Joe’s not going anywhere.”

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Brown’s comments were backed up by star receiver Tee Higgins, who sat nearby during the interview and said:

“You heard it from my wingman right there.”

The whole saga started from two places. First, when reporter Grant Cohn suggested that the Minnesota Vikings were eyeing a massive trade for Burrow. The alleged package included J.J. McCarthy, Jonathan Greenard, and two first-round picks for the Bengals quarterback. 

Secondly, following a rough 24-0 loss to the Ravens in Week 15, Burrow mentioned that if he wanted to keep playing, he needed to find a way to make the game “fun” again.

His “fun” comment was quickly twisted into a sign that Burrow was either ready to retire early, like Andrew Luck, or force a trade to a new home. However, Burrow himself dismissed the speculations, explaining that he wasn’t talking about leaving the Bengals. In December, he explicitly remarked that he “can’t see” a scenario where he isn’t playing for Cincinnati next year.