CINCINNATI — FOX Sports NFL writer Greg Auman thinks the AFC North and NFC North will be closely tied in free agency next month. He had the Bengals bringing back defensive tackle DJ Reader after a two-year stint with Detroit, while he thinks the Bears will pluck Trey Hendrickson away from the Bengals on the open market.

Chicago has -$4 million in cap space right now, but could clear things up to pursue Hendrickson.

“Hendrickson, 31, doesn’t have the luster he had a year ago,” Auman wrote about his fourth-ranked player set to hit the market. “Instead of coming off back-to-back 17.5-sack seasons and four straight Pro Bowls, he’s now coming off core muscle surgery in December that limited him to four sacks in seven games in 2025. He got a one-year, $29 million deal from the Bengals last year, but isn’t likely to draw as much this time around. ESPN has him as the league’s No. 1 overall free agent, but will he get more than one year guaranteed, and at much more than $20 million a year? He needs 19 sacks to reach 100 for his career and could easily get that in two more healthy seasons.”

Cincinnati cannot let this happen.

It’s imperative to operate the smartest way possible and franchise tag Hendrickson for a little over $30 million with the chance to rescind the tag before free agency if no trade suitors arise.

Even a sixth- or seventh-round pick is better than Hendrickson landing with Chicago like this for nothing. Cincinnati can work with Hendrickson over the NFL Combine to find a trade on the tag, and if no one pops up, it’s as simple as rescinding the tag before free agency so he can move on, and the Bengals can use their full salary cap resources to pursue his replacements.