The Chicago Bears rode a 2-2 record into their bye week. They looked much better in their last two games after back-to-back disappointing outings to start the season, but they're still pretty much a work in progress.
The offense has improved under head coach Ben Johnson, but the bar wasn't high to clear. The defense, however, has regressed from the Matt Eberflus days. That's where the Cincinnati Bengals could provide a helping hand, as their struggles could lead to an All-Pro pass rusher coming available.
Bears Should Make Trade Offer For Bengals DE Trey Hendrickson
The Bengals are struggling without Joe Burrow, which isn't surprising. The move to acquire a 40-year-old QB in Joe Flacco is unlikely to be the answer to their prayers either. With the trade deadline looming large, Cincinnati's front office may decide to part ways with Trey Hendrickson before he walks away from the franchise in free agency and they lose him without any compensation in return.
Dennis Allen's defense hasn't put up much pressure on the quarterback. The team has five sacks in four weeks, with Dayo Odeyingbo and Montez Sweat logging one each. That's far below the expectations for players making as much money as they do, and adding a player coming off back-to-back seasons with 17.5 sacks would certainly work wonders in that regard.
The Bengals fielded calls for Hendrickson in the offseason, and the Bears were among the teams rumored to be interested in his services. He ultimately ended his holdout after receiving an $18 million raise for the 2025 season. However, with how the contract negotiations played out, it's hard to imagine him wanting to stay with Cincinnati for any longer than the end of his current contract. The Bengals would have to pay him around $30.2 million next season to keep him under the franchise tag, and even then, they'd likely just be dealing with a highly-paid player who has no desire to be with the organization, so they might be better off just trading him.
Bears GM Ryan Poles might not want to give a first-round pick for a pass-rusher who's about to turn 31 years old. Then again, they could roll the dice by offering them a conditional second-round selection. And while accommodating his steep salary in a contract extension could be tricky, given that the Bears only have roughly $15 million in available salary cap space, there are always ways to get around that if both parties are interested.
Austin Booker will return to the lineup soon after getting back onto the practice field this week. His presence should have a big impact on the pass-rushing department once he is healthy enough to play in a game. But even if that's the case, Hendrickson is one of the prime headhunters in the game, and even if he loses a step in his age-31 season, he could be the type of pickup that could take this defense to the next level.