The Baltimore Ravens have more than one problem on defense, which the Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions exposed with 41 and 38 points against, respectively, in Weeks 1 and 3.
ESPN’s Mina Kimes and Dominique Foxworth suggested on the Tuesday on “The Mina Kimes Show featuring Lenny” that the Ravens should get in the mix for an addition at defensive tackle as soon as possible. But their ESPN colleague Jeremy Fowler took a slightly different line on Wednesday, when he linked Baltimore to a potential move for an edge-rusher.
“Ravens coach John Harbaugh publicly called out his pass-rush Monday night,” Fowler said. “The Roquan Smith trade nearly three years ago was a catalyst when it was made. Perhaps GM Eric DeCosta has another splash move in him.”
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Fowler made the comments in the context of a discussion about the Cincinnati Bengals potentially dealing stud pass-rusher Trey Hendrickson, who led the NFL with 17.5 sacks last season.
Trading Hendrickson wasn’t exactly a non-starter for the Bengals this offseason, as the 30-year-old defensive end made it well-known that he felt he was underpaid and wanted a multi-year contract extension, the likes of which Cincinnati wasn’t willing to hand out.
The Bengals took calls on Hendrickson in the days leading up to Aug. 25, when the team agreed to a restructured contract that bumped his salary in 2025 from $21 million to $29 million. That, and the promise of free agency next March, put the issue to bed.
But Cincinnati is now without quarterback Joe Burrow for up to three months after he suffered a turf toe injury in Week 2 that demanded surgery to repair. The Bengals squeaked out a one-point victory in Cleveland over the Browns in a Week 1 game they probably should have lost, and that was with Burrow playing. Cincinnati then escaped with a four-point victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 2, despite backup QB Jake Browning tossing three interceptions.
The Minnesota Vikings subsequently hosted the Bengals last weekend in Minneapolis and blew the doors off in a 48-10 walloping that has some around the NFL wondering what might become of Cincinnati’s season after back-to-back games that included three and five turnovers, respectively.
It was the Bengals’ defense that pundits presumed would be the team’s overwhelming weakness in 2025, and even with Hendrickson, things haven’t been great on that side of the ball. But if the offense continues turning it over at anywhere near the rate it has, wins will be difficult to come by and Cincinnati may find itself a seller ahead of the Nov. 4 trade deadline.
Hendrickson plays a premium position and still has a lot of juice as a four-time consecutive Pro Bowler who earned first-team All-Pro honors last season and has six QB hits and two sacks through three games in 2025. All signs point to a breakup next spring anyway, so if the Bengals’ struggles continue, pulling back a Day 2 draft pick for Hendrickson is a no-brainer.
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