CINCINNATI -- Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson will likely miss the rest of the season after undergoing core muscle surgery later this week, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter on Monday.
The reigning All-Pro selection is dealing with an undisclosed issue that has sidelined him for the last five games. Earlier in the day, Bengals coach Zac Taylor said Hendrickson was seeing a specialist to gather more information on the issue that has impacted his season. That meeting indicated that a procedure will be required after rest and rehab did not repair the injury, sources told Schefter.
It ends a season that has not been a pleasant one for all parties involved.
In Week 6 against Green Bay, Hendrickson suffered what was initially termed as a back injury. He did not return for the second half of the team's loss to the Packers. He missed the team's following game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The injury's diagnosis was changed to a hip issue, according to Cincinnati's injury report.
In Week 8, Hendrickson was limited at the first two practices, missed the final practice of the week and was officially listed as questionable for the home contest against the New York Jets. Hendrickson played. However, in the first half of that game, he reaggravated the injury and missed the entire second half of the 39-38 upset defeat.
Hendrickson has not played or practiced since that game. And since then, there has been little clarity on his injury status moving forward.
Hendrickson has not been spotted at practices during periods open to the media. At the beginning of recent weeks, Taylor has immediately declared Hendrickson as doubtful to play before the team had even started preparing for the upcoming opponent.
That status designation changed Monday when Taylor promptly ruled Hendrickson out for the team's Week 15 game against the Baltimore Ravens as he sought a specialist's consultation.
On the team's most recent injury report, Hendrickson's injury is listed with a "hip/pelvis" designation. When asked for more clarity on which of the previously associated body parts was ailing Hendrickson, Taylor said "it's kind of all that."
The Bengals (4-9) have four games remaining in the regular season and are three games behind the division-leading Pittsburgh Steelers (7-6), who split their two games with Cincinnati this season. If the Bengals can't win the division, their season will end before Hendrickson's projected recovery timeline will end.
Monday's development caps a tumultuous calendar year between the star pass rusher and the team. When the 2024 season ended in January, he led the NFL with 17.5 sacks and was named to his fourth consecutive Pro Bowl. He also earned the All-Pro honor, a superlative a Bengals player had not received since 2015.
Hendrickson also found himself in a contract dispute with the team and requested a trade at the beginning of the offseason. After a trade never materialized, he was a training camp holdout until he and the team reached an agreement on a $14 million raise, including incentives, to bring his potential yearly salary to $30 million.
His contract will void five days after the upcoming Super Bowl, according to OverTheCap.com, which gives the Bengals $6.5 million in dead money against the salary cap for the 2026 season.
