Tee Higgins, Trey Hendrickson throw more potential chaos into draft night

Tee Higgins' unhappiness with the Bengals decision to franchise tag him has been an issue for most of the offseason in Cincinnati. The recent revelation that Trey Hendrickson also wants out of town due to financial concerns about his next contract has taken things from bad to worse for the Bengals.

The saving grace regarding the Hendrickson news is that it's broken just ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft. That gives the Bengals a lot of options heading into the big event. It's conceivable the front office could choose to deal one or two of their disgruntled stars for younger (cheaper) talent they can select in the early rounds.

That would represent a significant gamble for a team that possesses legitimate Super Bowl aspirations. Joe Burrow is good enough to elevate the talent around him to title contention. Taking away Tee Higgins from his receiver room might put too much stress on Burrow to be transcendent on a weekly basis.

Trey Hendrickson joins Tee Higgins in requesting trade from Bengals

Parting with Hendrickson might even be more painful for the Bengals' defense. Double-digit sack artists are difficult to find. Cincinnati did draft Myles Murphy in Round 1 of last year's draft as a potential starter at edge-rusher but he failed to play a meaningful role as a rookie. Counting on him to step in and replace Hendrickson would be more of a hope than a plan for the Bengals front office.

At the very least, the Bengals could use the No. 18 overall pick they own in Round 1 to fill one big need. Jared Verse is an edge rusher who could fit nicely at that spot in the draft. If the Bengals choose to bolster their wide receiver room a speed merchant like Xavier Worthy could be of interest.

The Bengals might not want to be movers and shakers in this year's draft but unrest on their current roster could easily force their hand. They don't want to lose a star like Higgins or Hendrickson but the draft is the time to make that kind of deal. That at least gives the Bengals the chance to replace them with a young player with major upside.