Bengals' Duke Tobin seems to respond to Trey Hendrickson franchise-tag rumors

A report from earlier in February mentioned that the Cincinnati Bengals could use the franchise tag to retain the rights to pass-rusher Trey Hendrickson in order to receive draft-pick compensation from a different club for Hendrickson's services.

While speaking with reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine on Tuesday, Bengals director of player personnel/de facto general manager Duke Tobin suggested he may not be eager to go down such a road. 

Bengals not open to "very complicated" Trey Hendrickson scenario?

"All trades are difficult," Tobin explained, according to Ben Baby of ESPN. "You got to find a partner, and you have to find somebody that you have to have some cooperation with your players that you're talking about this with. Trades can be complicated, and that hypothetical scenario would be very complicated."

Hendrickson remained in the final year of his contract after he agreed to a revised deal that gave him a raise for the 2025 season. He then played in only seven games before he needed core surgery in December. 

According to James Rapien of Sports Illustrated, using the franchise tag on Hendrickson would cost the Bengals $30.2M for the 2026 season. Additionally, the 31-year-old would have a $36.7M salary-cap hit.

Cincinnati would be on the hook for both if Hendrickson signed the tag and no team traded for him.

What is Bengals' mindset about possibly tagging Trey Hendrickson?

Tobin indicated that he may publicly reveal whether or not he will use the franchise tag on Hendrickson during this week's scouting combine. 

"I don't throw anything on or off the table with Trey, and we're excited about attacking this offseason," Tobin added. "We have resources to attack the offseason in a big way, and we want to do that."

Logic suggests the 2026 Bengals would be better with a healthy and motivated Hendrickson in the lineup, but it's unclear how he may react if he's tagged by a team that hasn't given him a multiyear deal more than once. Outsiders could get the answer to such questions as early as next week.