Trey Hendrickson trying to downplay his first game vs. the Bengals

It’s becoming more than an undercard in Sunday’s AFC North showdown. Trey Hendrickson will be facing his former team for the first time when the Bengals play in Baltimore against the Ravens Sunday afternoon.

While he’s trying to downplay the matchup against the Bengals, the reality is he can’t.

“We’re a team. This isn’t an individual sport,” Hendrickson said this week. “It’s about the team and what I can bring and what they can bring, and what we can collectively do as a unit. I think that’s what makes football special, and I’m looking forward to it Sunday.”

You can hear it in the tone of the Bengals’ players and head coach Zac Taylor when they’ve been asked about Trey Hendrickson. They’re ready to move on and focus on who’s on the field for them.

While Hendrickson has 83 sacks in his career, now in his 10th season, he hasn’t sacked Joe Burrow. Hopefully, that doesn’t happen on Sunday. But this is a major storyline going into Sunday’s game, with Hendrickson facing the Bengals for the first time since walking in free agency in March.

After all the drama between the All-Pro edge rusher and the Bengals, the Bengals want to show they were correct to move on and commit that money to different players like Boye Mafe, Dexter Lawrence, and Jonathan Allen.