Now that Joe Thuney has been extended until 2027 [a very reasonable contract if he remains healthy], does that mean the Bears cleared enough cap to trade for Trey Hendrickson? Well, yes, but mostly no unless Hendrickson is willing to play for that $16M/yr he’s currently on, then get paid next year

If Poles cuts Tremaine Edmunds and D’Andre Swift in ’26 that could clear about $18.7M. Restructure some contracts, convert a bunch to signing bonus, and voila, technically Hendrickson could squeeze into cap

The Bears would also have to count on the cap increasing by a good amount

However, given that Hendrickson will likely demand upwards to $35M/yr, it’s easy to see how the cap would be tighter than a nun’s…budget

Here’s a good breakdown on the situation

IMO, I absolutely wouldn’t turn over a 1st. In fact, I wouldn’t offer anything higher than a 3rd. In some ways a team would be doing the Bengals a favor for taking the headache out of their locker room. The more this Hendrickson fiasco drags out, the more this becomes a bigger distraction as the days turn to weeks, even months, the less the Bengals are going to demand. At some point, gotta figure they just cut their losses. Then again, this is the cheap-ass Bengals that make the McCaskeys look like Sinatra

Here’s another take on possibly trading for Hendrickson.