Detroit Lions fans have fantasized all offseason about trading for the likes of a pass rusher like Myles Garrett or Maxx Crosby. Unfortunately, Crosby signed an extension with the Raiders this week, and the Browns remain adamant that Garrett—who publicly requested a trade—is not up for grabs.
However, on Thursday, the 2024 NFL sack leader has requested and been granted permission for a trade. Per multiple reports, Cincinnati Bengals edge rusher Trey Hendrickson is now free to seek out a trade.
Hendrickson is 30 years old, but he’s produced 17.5 sacks in back-to-back seasons. In fact, he’s had at least 13 sacks in four of his last five seasons. Since 2020, only T.J. Watt (73.5) and Myles Garrett (72.0) have more sacks than Hendrickson. At 6-foot-4, 270 pounds, he’s also got the size and strength to hold the edge in the run game.
Perhaps even more notably, Hendrickson has a history with Lions coach Dan Campbell. Hendrickson spent the first four years of his career (2017-20) with the New Orleans Saints, when Campbell was the team’s assistant head coach/tight ends coach.
The trick in acquiring Hendrickson will be the financial cost. Detroit could easily afford whatever draft capital it would cost to trade for the 30-year-old defensive end, but Hendrickson clearly wants a new contract. He’s on the final year of his current deal, which includes a $15.8 million salary and a total of $200,000 in roster bonuses. But after finishing as the sack leader in 2024—and seeing Maxx Crosby’s $34.5 million a year extension—Hendrickson is due for a significant raise.
Meanwhile, the Lions have a pass rusher of their own they plan on paying in Aidan Hutchinson. Would the Lions be interested in handing out two mega-contracts to pass rushers this offseason? Lions general manager Brad Holmes poured some cold water on the idea last week during the NFL Combine when he was asked if Detroit would make a move for a franchise edge rusher.
“Those guys are hard to acquire, and it’s hard to keep them, financially,” Holmes said. “Again, we have one that’s due for an extension and we’ve already kind of gotten to the planning stages about him already. When you talk about adding another, it’s can you financially add another one? Because you want to add the other one on top of everything else you already have, and that makes it tough.”
But we shall see.
