When the Atlanta Falcons offseason first started, there was hope that the team could find a way to land Myles Garrett, Maxx Crosby, or Trey Hendrickson. Each of the trio of pass rushers had their names in the trade market, and there was reason to believe that at least one could be on the move.
However, Garrett suddenly fell in love with Cleveland again and reset the market at the position. Crosby was off the board before the offseason truly began signing an extension with the Raiders. This left Hendrickson as the last true star pass rusher Atlanta had any hopes of targeting. It remained a long shot with the Falcons having to not only convince the Bengals to trade their star but to win the bidding war. One that it appears will no longer happen as the Bengals did the predictable and are working to retain Hendrickson.
Trey Hendrickson is expected to remain with the Bengals after trade talks
Who could have seen this coming? The team allowed their star player to gauge his market value with other teams and will now use that price point to work on an extension. This is the second time Hendrickson has requested and trade and it ended with the Bengals finding a way to retain their star edge rusher.
This is on the heels of a historic re-signing of both Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. It appears Cincy never intended to let Hendrickson walk out the door but were simply letting other teams negotiate on their behalf. It is a surprisingly savvy move for a front office that so often hasn't been able to get out of its own way.
For Atlanta, it is yet another frustrating dead end as the team searches for a star edge rusher willing to come to the Falcons. An understandably hard sell when you look at the lack being offered. To attract a star pass rusher the Falcons are going to have to rebuild through the draft and have enough talent to be a tempting landing spot. Why would a star pass rusher choose to land in Atlanta?
The Falcons must turn their focus to the draft and hope to find the right free agent fits to rebuild the position. With Hendrickson soon off the board, it is now clear that no star defender will land in Atlanta for the 2025 season.