Most are expecting the Bengals to add significant pieces to their team with Cincinnati currently set to have the seventh most salary cap space in the NFL this offseason with $77.9 million.

Former Titans general manager Ran Carthon discussed the possibility of re-signing edge rusher Joseph Ossai.

“He’s one of the few defensive guys, particularly on the defensive line, that they’ve drafted that was a Week 1 starter heading into the season,” Carton said So he’s a guy I think should be looked at about re-signing.” Carthon said on the “With the First Pick” podcast.

Carthon was less bullish on other pending free agents, including former NFL sack leader Trey Hendrickson.

“But as far as Trey Hendrickson, Geno Stone, Cam Taylor-Britt, I could see them easily moving on from all those guys.” Carthon said. “But then you talked about all the AJ Epenesas, the DJ Wonnums. I think if you’re the Cincinnati Bengals, you’re looking for that premier pass rusher. Here’s the issue: I don’t know that you’re ever going to go out and get another Trey Hendrickson in free agency in terms of an edge rusher just based off of how Trey Hendrickson’s tenure went when he was coming as a free agent from the New Orleans Saints. He was still on an upward trajectory, a guy that had a couple years starting, but he was still impactful in the games he played for the Saints. And the Bengals offered him the opportunity to be a legit starter, and obviously he took full advantage of that and became one of the better pass rushers in the league.”

This is a very good thing to point out by Carthon as we enter the offseason, as it points out just how rare that kind of free agency signing is and even more so for the Bengals, considering their history of failing during that stage of the offseason when it comes to adding key players.

The fact of the matter is that players with upside like Hendrickson’s turned out to be just don’t ever hit the free agent market because of the talent they can potentially bring to a new team as opposed to their current team. If you go and ask Saints fans now, while they’re obviously excited about what Chase Young has brought to the pass rush. I am confident they would tell you that they would have rather kept Hendrickson in the grand scheme of things, as even with Cameron Jordan being younger back in 2021 and thus more effective than he is currently, Hendrickson had all the makings of someone worthy of carrying the torch for the Saints defense.

Instead, Hendrickson has turned into the Bengals’ best free agent signing in franchise history by a mile. And if the Bengals are hoping to replicate that signing from five years ago, then it could prove to be much more difficult than they realize, as free agency is littered with guys that could be more built to compliment an rising player at the position, such as Myles Murphy, who flashed the ability to be a playmaker more consistently this past season.

There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it; if the Bengals are to improve and reach championship capabilities again in 2026, they have to spend in free agency to at least provide a more stable floor along the defense and establish depth on offense.

It’s going to be hard to find another Hendrickson, but they need to find capable players that can bolster their pass rush.

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