Trey Hendrickson is set to face the Bengals for the first time since signing with Baltimore

BALTIMORE (AP) — Trey Hendrickson is finally looking healthier — just in time for a matchup with his former team.

The pass rusher who went from Cincinnati to Baltimore as a free agent returned from a finger operation and had a sack last weekend at Cleveland. Now Hendrickson and the Ravens host the Bengals on Sunday.

“It’ll be a lot of fun,” Cincinnati tackle Orlando Brown Jr. said. “I’ve got a lot of respect for him and everything he did here helping us win games and the production he had. I’m looking forward to it.”

Hendrickson is mostly downplaying this matchup publicly, but even before he left the Bengals for a division rival, there was a holdout during training camp before his final season in Cincinnati.

“As a Christian, I forgive, and obviously I move on, and there were wonderful times that I had there,” Hendrickson said. “There will be a time to reflect and all that stuff, but right now there’s an opponent in front of us. As the Ravens, we look forward to capitalizing on everything that we can this week.”

Aside from Hendrickson’s reunion with the Bengals, the big question this week is whether Lamar Jackson will be healthy enough for another quarterbacking battle against Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow. Jackson missed Baltimore’s past two games and was limited at practice this week with an ankle issue.

The 2024 season showed the kind of excitement Burrow and Jackson can produce when both are healthy. The Ravens won both matchups that season, 41-38 in overtime
and 35-34. The star QBs combined for 17 touchdown passes in those two games.

However, both teams missed the playoffs last season. Each handed the other a troubling home loss. The Ravens had recovered from a bad start with five straight wins before Cincinnati arrived on a Thursday night and hammered Baltimore 32-14, with Burrow outplaying Jackson.

Two weeks later there was a rematch in Cincinnati, which the Ravens won 24-0. They intercepted Burrow twice in a game that eliminated the Bengals from postseason contention.

“I do not like getting in shootouts with these guys,” Baltimore cornerback Marlon Humphrey said. “It usually means I did not have the best game, so let’s hope that doesn’t happen.”

Need to know

Cincinnati (3-2) at Baltimore (4-2).

When/where to watch: Sunday, 1 p.m. EDT, CBS.

Latest odds: Ravens by 1 1/2.

Against the spread: Bengals 2-2-1; Ravens 2-4.

Last week: Bengals were off; Ravens lost to the Browns 13-10.

Last meeting: Ravens beat the Bengals 24-0 on Dec. 14, 2025, in Cincinnati.

Series record: Ravens lead 33-28.

Matchup to watch

Cincinnati WR Ja’Marr Chase vs. the Baltimore secondary. In 10 games against the Ravens, Chase has averaged 7.5 receptions for 120.4 yards. In 2024, he had 21 catches for 457 yards and five touchdowns in the two games against Baltimore. Keep an eye on how safety Kyle Hamilton is deployed as the Ravens try to balance the desire to be aggressive against the need to avoid allowing the big play. Chase was in concussion protocol and fellow wideout Tee Higgins had an adductor injury, but both played in a win over Miami on Oct. 11, and they had an open date to rest after that.

Stats and stuff

— Burrow, now in his seventh season, has 31 games with at least three touchdown passes. Dan Marino (42), Patrick Mahomes (38) and Peyton Manning (32) are the only quarterbacks with more in their first seven seasons in NFL history.

— The Bengals pulled off what is still their largest comeback to win a regular-season road game against the Ravens in 1996. Cincinnati rallied from a 21-3 deficit to win 24-21 at Baltimore’s Memorial Stadium.

— Hamilton and teammate Trenton Simpson entered Week 7 as the only players in the NFL with at least 40 tackles, five tackles for loss and an interception.

— Baltimore’s Derrick Henry has 13,552 yards rushing. He’s 110 behind Jerome Bettis for eighth on the NFL’s career list, and 132 behind LaDainian Tomlinson for seventh.

— Baltimore has scored in 393 consecutive games, one shy of matching Denver (1992-2017) for the second-longest streak in league history.

—- Henry needs one rushing touchdown to become the third player to produce 40 for two different teams. The others were Hall of Famers Marcus Allen (Raiders and Chiefs) and Marshall Faulk (Colts and Rams).

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AP Sports Writer Joe Reedy contributed to this report.

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