Recently, it was unearthed that Cincinnati Bengals star defensive end Trey Hendrickson would be ending his holdout and reporting to the team's training camp despite not having a new contract. Those reports came to fruition on Wednesday when the superstar was indeed seen at Bengals practice despite the ongoing contract situation, as reported by Josh Alper of NBC Sports' Pro Football Talk.

Recently, NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported on what Hendrickson's approach would be at the team's training camp.

“Trey Hendrickson is in camp — and my understanding is he plans to stay engaged in meetings and around the team — as he continues to wait for a new deal,” reported Schultz on X, formerly Twitter.

Schultz also reposted a video from Jeremy Rauch showing Hendrickson giving some pointers to Bengals rookie Shemar Stewart, who also had a contract saga of his own before coming to terms on his rookie deal recently.

A strange time for the Bengals

Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson (91) runs onto the field before the game against the Baltimore Ravens at Paycor Stadium.
Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

Even with Hendrickson in the lineup last year, the Bengals took a big step back on defense–that unit was widely viewed as the reason why the team couldn't accomplish much of note despite one of Joe Burrow's best seasons of his career.

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However, without Hendrickson, it's possible that the Bengals would become the worst defensive unit in the NFL, as in many ways, the superstar was the only thing keeping them afloat.

Now would be a good time for the Bengals' notoriously cheap ownership group to break that reputation and come to terms on a new deal with Hendrickson, or else the offense might be tasked with scoring 35+ points a game just to give themselves a chance to stay close.

Of course, there's also the addition of Stewart through the draft, who should give the Bengals some added defensive depth and figures to be able to contribute right away after his contract situation was recently resolved.

Bengals fans will certainly hope that Hendrickson and the team reach a similar conclusion sooner rather than later.

In any case, the Bengals' season is slated to begin on September 7 on the road against the Cleveland Browns.

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