There is no doubt that the Dallas Cowboys are talent-deficient on defense, and that’s what you would expect when you trade away Micah Parsons a few days before the season starts. But is there a chance the Cowboys could make a move to improve the defense with all of their added draft capital and cap space?
Bengals star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson has been a player who has been on the trade block all offseason, and his status in Cincinnati is still up in the air as he waits for a new deal. Hendrickson signed a revised contract this offseason, but is still scheduled to become a free agent in 2026. Should the Cowboys be interested?
Cowboys could consider blockbuster trade for Bengals star Trey Hendrickson
Despite the addition of Jadeveon Clowney, the biggest need for the Cowboys this year and moving forward is pass-rush help. The defensive tackles have been incredible through two weeks, but the lack of help on the edge has been very noticeable. The hope is that Clowney can improve the unit, but he is a short-term option and is a rotational player at this stage of his career.
The issue is that most teams aren’t going to trade away proven pass rushers in the middle of the season, but Hendrickson could be a viable option with Joe Burrow likely to miss the entire 2025 season. The Bengals have been unwilling to commit to Hendrickson long-term, and with the hopes of the playoffs likely gone, there could be an incentive to trade him before the deadline to save cap space and pick up future draft picks.
It wouldn’t be hard to see the logic of making the move on the Cowboys’ side of things. Adding an All-Pro pass rusher to their defense and keeping their extra first-round picks would be the best of both worlds. Hendrickson isn’t as good as Parsons, but he’s been incredibly productive and would be a massive upgrade to the defensive line.
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Dallas could give Hendrickson the long-term deal that he has been seeking, and it would likely come in way under what Parsons received from Green Bay. It wouldn’t be hard to argue that Hendrickson, Kenny Clark, and two future first-round picks would be better for the Cowboys than Parsons (and whatever would be traded for Hendrickson).
In the post-Parsons press conference, Stephen Jones mentioned that the Cowboys wouldn’t be afraid to trade away draft capital for players who could make their team better right now. Hendrickson would undoubtedly be one of those players, but the Cowboys need to show over the next month that they can actually be contenders. And if they can beat teams like the Bears, Jets, and Panthers, maybe we do see them make a trade for a top-tier player for a playoff push.
The Cowboys have shown that they are willing to be aggressive with trades (Amari Cooper, George Pickens, Jonathan Mingo, etc.), and going after Hendrickson does fit their philosophy. But will that actually happen? Who knows, but don’t be surprised if Hendrickson is the subject of plenty of trade rumors over the next month, given what is going on in Cincinnati right now.