Trey Hendrickson Says Bengals Contract Talks Haven't Changed Despite Ending Holdout

Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson says his decision to end his training camp holdout on Wednesday doesn't mean there has been progress in contract talks with the team.

"Nothing's really changed. Being here, just acclimating with the guys, that was a priority for my wife and I," Hendrickson told reporters (h/t Fox 19's Jeremy Rauch.)

Hendrickson continued, "Things are exactly the same. What I'm not going to do, as best as I can, avoid being a distraction. I want to help the guys."

Hendrickson did not dress for Wednesday's training camp, beginning what is on track to be a hold-in with the Bengals.

He is seeking an extension from the Bengals as he heads into the final season of a contract set to pay him a base salary of $15.8 million in 2025, per Spotrac.

Hendrickson's presence at camp was immediately noticeable as he began working with rookie defensive end Shemar Stewart, as seen in a video shared by Rauch.

Hendrickson has missed five days of training camp since the session opened last Wednesday, reportedly racking up $250,000 in fines in the process.

The public split between Hendrickson and the Bengals began after the team allowed Hendrickson to seek a trade in March.

Bengals executive vice president Katie Blackburn then said in April she believed Hendrickson "should be happy at certain rates that maybe he doesn't think he'd be happy at."

Hendrickson said in an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show the next day that Blackburn's comments were "definitely disappointing" and that the Bengals' overall communication had been "poor" throughout the offseason.

The defensive end trained in Cincinnati for a month in July, but he and his wife left for Florida shortly before training camp, The Athletic's Dianna Russini previously reported.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport had noted at the time that Hendrickson's disagreement with the Bengals stemmed from his desire for "guaranteed money into next year and beyond."

Hendrickson told Russini just before training camp started that the Bengals had made him two offers, neither of which "had the guarantees we were looking for," and that he had left Ohio because he didn't want to be a "distraction."

"The plan was, be here Day 1," Hendrickson told reporters on Wednesday. "Things transpired. News happened to me, and we just kind of make decisions as we go. There's no blueprint on what to do, how to do it. We're just going to stand true to what being Hendricksons means to us."

Hendrickson added that he believed he and the Bengals are on the same page in terms of understanding he will not be playing under his current deal next season.

"Not only I've mentioned it multiple times this offseason, but also I believe ownership has as well, that there are plans of not having to play under the current deal," Hendrickson said. "I think that's something that we have a common goal to get to. I think that's the plan moving forward."

Hendrickson, who is heading into his age-31 season, has recorded 17.5 sacks in consecutive seasons for Cincinnati. He told Russini earlier this month that he wants to be a defensive captain during his fifth season with the Bengals.