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New York Times
7 hours ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Trey Hendrickson follows the Ja'Marr Chase playbook, with more inevitable endgame: Dehner Jr.
CINCINNATI — Trey Hendrickson walked across the street to the Cincinnati Bengals' practice field after ending his holdout on Monday. He wore black pants and a black t-shirt with a white hat. He talked with teammates, conversed with coaches, but mostly was a spectator. He switched from holdout to hold-in. Advertisement We've seen this show before. An annual rite of summer along the banks of the Ohio River. The only thing murkier than the water is the Week 1 availability of a Bengals star. Last year, Ja'Marr Chase wore the hat. He watched practice. Tried not to be a distraction. It lasted for a month. He let his agent quietly fight over an extension behind the scenes, leaving everyone to wonder if he would suit up for the opener. That pushed right up against the days before Cincinnati lost to the New England Patriots at Paycor Stadium. Hendrickson, painted into a corner as $250K in fines for missing five days of camp started to mount, is following the path Chase carved out last year (and Jessie Bates before him, Joe Mixon before him, and so on). His presence back in Cincinnati had zero to do with progress on getting a contract signed. 'Things are exactly the same,' Hendrickson said during an eight-minute scrum at his locker after practice. Trey Hendrickson spoke for about 7 minutes at his locker after practice. Very conscious of how his presence is perceived, says focused on mentoring. "Things are exactly the same (with the contract). What I'm not going to do, is as best I can do, avoid being a distraction." — Paul Dehner Jr. (@pauldehnerjr) July 30, 2025 There has been progress compared to when we last saw Hendrickson, frustratingly holding court with the media on the sidelines during OTAs for 20 minutes. The two parties are in a good place concerning average annual value and years. Yet, the inability to agree on guarantees — which has always been the sticking point in negotiations for the 30-year-old — keeps the two sides apart. Knowing the gap wasn't going away, Hendrickson had two options: One, keep holding out and racking up fines, being out of sight and out of mind, disconnected from the team and the organization. Or he could return, be seen, and be a daily reminder to everyone that the star still doesn't have a deal while staying connected to a team he inevitably will end up playing for in 2025. Advertisement Hendrickson chose the latter. A strategy that worked for Chase. Even though he never agreed to a deal, his presence at camp made a difference and got the two sides close to finalizing a contract. Hendrickson was working out in Cincinnati with the hopes that would be the case. When talks broke down before training camp began, he went back to Florida as a holdout. 'So the goal was always to be in Cincinnati,' Hendrickson said. 'Some things transpired that became public. There was never something where I wasn't going to be here.' Hendrickson has shown and voiced many objectives. He wants security, which can only come from guaranteed money. He wants to use his leverage of not participating to help make that happen. He wants to be a leader. He wants to be a mentor. He wants to feel part of the team, but can't actually be part of it on the field right now. Most importantly, which he repeated multiple times for emphasis, Hendrickson doesn't want to be a distraction. Accomplishing all of these goals simultaneously is nearly impossible. There are as many contradictions tucked inside this situation as millions of dollars at stake. 'What I'm not going to do is as best as I can avoid being a distraction,' Hendrickson said. 'I want to help the guys. Guys have helped me along the way like Demario Davis, Cam Jordan and even Sam Hubbard helped me a lot when I was here. To be that right now, that's what's most important. This narrative will iron itself out as we continue to progress toward the season.' When Chase took this same angle last year, he admitted the contract dispute was a disruption. He was out of sync with Burrow in the opener due to lack of practice and self-admittedly 'crashed out' in the second game against Kansas City, drawing an unsportsmanlike penalty. Chase now owns a triple crown and, a few months ago, was the highest paid non-quarterback in the NFL. Advertisement There's nothing wrong with following the same path. Except Hendrickson isn't Chase. Not by age, not by value, not by relationship with Joe Burrow, not by level of player, not by key to the Bengals' success. Hendrickson is a great player. He deserves a huge raise and a big contract. But he won't have the same leverage as Chase, nor receive the same levels of guarantees in future years of his contract. He has every right to fight for every guaranteed dollar in what is likely the last big contract of his life. It's merely a hard sell to do that, along with everything else he hopes to do as a leader and mentor. 'My wife and I talked about it, prayed about it, what are we going to do, how are we going to handle what's been conveyed to us,' Hendrickson said. 'Punishing the young players and not being a part of their development would be a selfish act … Now it is focusing on this defense, how I can mentor, how I can be a part of it in this weird process we are going through.' Hendrickson spoke the truth there. This process is quite weird. It also feels inevitable, due to history and what we know about both sides. These deals do eventually get done when the deadline comes. In this case, that will be closer to the start of the season. A middle ground of guarantees exists here. Both sides should eventually move to that space. Hendrickson can't pass on signing like Chase did. His age and elite recent production mean betting on himself would be a bad bet. Topping 35 sacks in two years will be tough, and he'll only be one year older. The Bengals also desperately need a fast start and have emphasized it at every turn since the five-game win streak to close 2024 fell a game short of the postseason. There's motivation to ensure the star pass rusher on a unit with a pass rush problem is in place and ready Week 1 at Cleveland. In all of his yearly negotiations with the team, after much consternation, they've eventually come to a compromise. Until then, Hendrickson will be here, avoiding fines, trying not to be a distraction, following the Chase playbook and hoping all of this combines to create a few million in guarantees. Which it probably will. It sure feels like too many pieces are in place for this not to get done … eventually. If it doesn't, every side involved will be worse for it. 'There's no blueprint on what to do, how to do it,' he said. 'We're just going to stand true to what Team Hendrickson means to us and moving forward from there.'
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Want to simplify your fantasy football draft? Target stars on these 6 NFL teams
One of my adult strategies has been to cultivate a life lived off-peak. Let's get to the grocery store when it's not overly crowded. Let's have a late lunch or an early dinner. Let's be smart about traffic, avoid gridlock. Better flow, happier life. Fantasy managers understand these goals. Every season, we're trying to find offenses that employ narrow usage trees — the teams that don't spread the ball around too much. Let's lean on just a few players. It's nice to be confident in secure knowledge of who commands the ball. [Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Football league for the 2025 NFL season] Today's assignment is to identify a few narrow-usage teams for 2025. You can consider them yourself and season them to taste. Maybe there's another 2014 Chicago Bears, waiting to be uncovered. Cincinnati Bengals We love the Cincinnati setup for the carnival potential — the Bengals have an elite passing game and a suspect defense, which leads to a high-scoring pinball game more often than not. But the narrowness of the usage here also makes fantasy managers happy. Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins will command high target shares and Chase Brown is one of those backs who never seems to come off the field. Andrei Iosivas stole six touchdowns last year, but that was mostly a function of Higgins missing time — I doubt Iosivas is close to that number if this season has a normal runout. Burrow threw three-quarters of his touchdown passes to Chase, Higgins or Brown last year. I'm going to draft Cincinnati players aggressively all summer. Miami Dolphins The Miami offense comes with obvious caveats. Can Tua Tagovailoa stay healthy? Can Mike McDaniel scheme up big plays again? Will Tyreek Hill be happy all year? But the Dolphins were a concentrated offense last year, and now target-gobbling tight end Jonnu Smith is gone. Hill, Jaylen Waddle and De'Von Achane should get all the volume they can handle. When Tagovailoa is your quarterback, there really isn't any floor. But there's still plausible upside here, and a concentrated offense for touches. Los Angeles Chargers This one might sneak up on you, because fantasy managers are focused on how the backfield might play out between Omarion Hampton and Najee Harris. But last year, the Chargers only had two receivers get past two touchdowns — Ladd McConkey scored seven times, and Quentin Johnston spiked on eight occasions. It took McConkey some time to figure out the pro game, but he was cooking down the stretch — he posted a 45-657-3 line over his final seven games (that's 109 catches and about 1,600 yards in a full season) and then had a 9-197-1 smash in the playoff loss to Houston. Even if the narrowness of the LAC tree only brings you to McConkey and Hampton (the latter's case is helped by Harris currently being unavailable), I've done my job here. Dallas Cowboys Maybe I'm wishcasting this one a bit but we'll shoehorn the Cowboys into this room. We know new OC Brian Schottenheimer generally wants to establish the run, but do the Cowboys have the right personnel to do that effectively? Meanwhile, the passing game is controlled by two overlord targets — CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens. Dak Prescott is good enough to run a carnival offense if it comes to it (I don't trust the Dallas defense, either), and Jake Ferguson is a useful tight end. Here's hoping Schottenheimer works talent-to-scheme, not the other way around. Tennessee Titans The Titans won just three games last year and were 27th in scoring, so it wasn't a fantasy bonanza. But we have to acknowledge that Calvin Ridley was the only player on the club to surpass 500 receiving yards, while Tony Pollard was ninth in the league in touches. Head coach Brian Callahan likes to feature his best skill players, and Ridley and Pollard have a better chance at success if rookie QB Cam Ward is the real deal. I recognize we try to be realistic with what we expect from rookie quarterbacks (Caleb Williams and Bryce Young wave hello), but it's also notable how C.J. Stroud and Jayden Daniels outkicked expectations in their first seasons. It's not likely that Ward is that level of an immediate smash, but perhaps he's more NFL-ready than the market recognizes. Ridley and Pollard both look like solid ADP values. Arizona Cardinals I'm still reconciling how I feel about this offense because I don't have complete faith in QB Kyler Murray. His substandard height leads to problems at times — the Cardinals couldn't get Marvin Harrison Jr. going in the short areas of the field last year, and Trey McBride has never been much of a touchdown scorer since turning pro (this is a Murray tweet). But you can't blame the Cardinals for trying to utilize their best players — about 60% of Arizona's completions last year went to Harrison, McBride or James Conner. If Murray's play takes a step forward — and part of this is on the play-calling, of course — we know who will primarily benefit.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Bengals' Chase, Ravens' Jackson, two Eagles enter 'Madden' 99 club
July 28 (UPI) -- Ja'Marr Chase, Lamar Jackson and two Philadelphia Eagles stars are among seven NFL players in the Madden NFL 26 99 club, EA Sports announced Monday. Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson, Cleveland Browns pass rusher Myles Garrett and Buffalo Bills quarterback and reigning NFL MVP Josh Allen join that foursome as the highest-rated players in the game. Madden NFL 26 will launch Aug. 14. Eagles running back Saquon Barkley and right tackle Lane Johnson represent the third set of teammates honored in the last three editions of the 99 club. Last month, EA Sports also named Barkley as the cover star of Madden NFL 26. Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill, San Francisco 49ers teammates Christian McCaffrey and Trent Williams and Kansas City Chiefs teammates Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce were in the 99 club for Madden NFL 25. Jefferson, former Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald and Dallas Cowboys guard Zack Martin joined Mahomes and Kelce in the 99 club in Madden NFL 24. Rookie ratings for Madden NFL 26 are expected to be revealed Tuesday. EA Sports plans to roll out additional player ratings Wednesday and Thursday for top offensive and defensive players.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Bengals WR Ja'Marr Chase describes feeling of being back with team at training camp
Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase talks to NFL Network's Rhett Lewis and Charles Davis about how having the team back together at training camp will be conducive to their success early on in the 2025 NFL season.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Dolphins' Tyreek Hill still ranks No. 3 on ESPN despite worst season since 2017
The post Dolphins' Tyreek Hill still ranks No. 3 on ESPN despite worst season since 2017 appeared first on ClutchPoints. The Miami Dolphins should keep a close eye on Tyreek Hill, even after a season that didn't meet expectations. Despite having his least productive year since becoming a full-time starter in 2017, Hill has somehow managed to hold onto his elite status. In ESPN's latest wide receiver rankings for the 2025 season, he came in at No. 3 overall. This ranking, put together by ESPN through surveys with NFL coaches, executives, and scouts, saw Hill drop just one spot from last year, when he was ranked No. 2, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN. That slight decline is surprising, especially considering Hill finished the season with only 959 receiving yards and six touchdowns over 17 games — his lowest numbers in a full season since his rookie year. 'He still impacts how you prepare for them so much due to his speed,' one NFC executive shared with Fowler. 'He dictates so much. His speed hasn't fallen off, despite the down year.' An AFC scout also chimed in, pointing out that even if Hill has lost some of his acceleration, he's still one of the most dangerous players on the field. Defensive coordinators have started to adapt, allowing Hill more motion and movement before the snap to disguise coverage and limit those explosive plays. Even with a slight dip in his stats, Hill remains among the elite, sharing the spotlight with Ja'Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson — a trio many fans and analysts consider the gold standard for wide receivers. Holding a top-three ranking is no small feat, especially after experiencing an 840-yard drop from the previous year and fewer touchdowns. This next season, Hill will likely still be one of the most dangerous deep threats in the NFL. His presence has teams adjusting, trying to match his speed and ability to dictate the passing game, and that in and of itself creates dividends for the Dolphins' offense.
