Joe Burrow might be the most powerful person within the Cincinnati Bengals organization other than the owners. He pleaded his case for Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins to get paid their value and they did. Now he’s pleading Trey Hendrickson’s case for him to get fair compensation, too, after leading the NFL in sacks last year.
Burrow spoke up on Hendrickson's behalf amid the getting-nasty contract dispute with a simple assessment of the situation.
"He's a guy who deserves to get paid what he wants and what the market is," Burrow said.
It’s hard to disagree with Burrow here, especially when you think about how miserable the Bengals’ defense was last year, despite Hendrickson’s production off the edge. It makes you wonder, why are the Bengals so bad at getting contracts signed and sealed?
I think the only justification is that they aren’t used to having this many players they have to worry about keeping and they’ve never had a leader like Burrow that’s going to stand up for the other 52 players on this roster. It’s proof they got it right with Burrow when they drafted.
Now they need to get it right when it comes to contract negotiations. Whatever game they’re playing isn’t working and it’s making them look more foolish. Burrow having to once again step in to nudge this front office in the direction it should have been in in the first place, just might be what this franchise needs to become a consistent contender.
Joe Burrow is the only person that can get the Cincinnati Bengals in the right direction
I’m sure when Burrow signed his contract extension, it was in the fine print that he was also the negotiator for the players with the front office. That seems to be his second job, along with terrorizing secondaries during the season.
Burrow made his stance clear with the Hendrickson negotiations and it seems the front office only listens when he speaks. Maybe this will finally resolve an issue that didn’t need to get to this point. It’s a no-brainer the Bengals need to keep Hendrickson at all costs.
Sure, they drafted Hendrickson’s probable replacement in Shemar Stewart, but even he isn’t signed to his rookie contract yet either. Something bigger has to be going on. The Bengals’ refusal to invest in the defense is going to cost them; more importantly, cost Burrow his prime.
Last year, Burrow proved he’s good enough to be the NFL’s MVP; his defense just wasn’t good enough. Now he’s making it clear to the front office they can’t keep pushing off important signings. Burrow’s able to force their hand now. What happens when the player decides they no longer want to play for a team that doesn’t value them?