Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson won’t go on injured reserve as he attempts to make a comeback this season.
But Hendrickson could need surgery after the year.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Hendrickson going to injured reserve has been a consideration, but so far, isn’t happening. He’s battling a sports hernia (reclassified in recent years as a “core muscle injury” though).
Per Rapoport, “surgery following the season is possible” for Hendrickson.
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As onlookers saw full and well, Hendrickson getting back on the field and reaggravating the injury against the New York Jets in late October was a setback to his recovery timeline.
The Bengals and Hendrickson want to avoid injured reserve, which would require him to miss at least four games before returning. But from the sounds of it, a tricky injury could mean he’s out for that range of games, anyway, depending on how things go.
This played a part in why the Bengals couldn’t trade Hendrickson at the deadline, even had they really wanted to move him. Offseason surgery for an edge rusher turning 31 in December might muddy his free-agency outlook, too, possibly upping the chances of a Bengals return, perhaps on a franchise tag.
For now, though, the focus zooms on whether the Bengals can keep winning to get that Joe Burrow return, plus how Hendrickson’s body responds to rehab.
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This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: Trey Hendrickson injury could force Bengals DE into offseason surgery
Reporting by Chris Roling, Bengals Wire / Bengals Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
