Cincinnati Bengals star defensive end Trey Hendrickson is officially on the open market.
The team’s deadline came on Tuesday, and Hendrickson didn’t receive the tag even though he was entering the final year of his contract. That means the former first-team All-Pro guard will become a free agent next week. The New England Patriots should be one of the many teams interested in signing the star defensive player.
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Hendrickson played in just seven games for the Bengals last year. His season was cut short due to a hip injury that required surgery. All told, he had 16 tackles and four sacks last season, in addition to one pass deflection.
Before last year, Hendrickson had 17.5 sacks in consecutive seasons. The four-time Pro Bowler posted a message of thanks following the team’s deadline to say goodbye to the city of Cincinnati.
Hendrickson had 81 sacks and 239 tackles in 117 games and was known as one of the most feared pass rushers in the NFL.
The Patriots could use a leading edge rusher, and Hendrickson could fill that need at an elite level, depending on how much gas he has left in the tank at 31 years old. His addition to Mike Vrabel’s defense could make this already elite unit even more formidable.
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This article originally appeared on Patriots Wired: Path clear for Patriots to try to sign first-team All-Pro linebacker