Trey Hendrickson Hits the Field Like He Never Left—‘Like He Hasn’t Missed a Step,’ Says Rookie Shemar Stewart
NFL sack champion Trey Hendrickson’s first day back at Bengals practice Wednesday drew rave reviews from both sides of the ball.
Left tackle Orlando Brown Jr., who has had some Titanic matchups with Hendrickson the previous two training camps, said Hendrickson got him for a sack on the last third down of the day:
"He's more than ready. It was great having full-speed reps today. He's such a hard-worker. He is who he is, and that's why they gave him $30 million. The motor. The attitude. He's one of the toughest players in football."
First-round pick Shemar Stewart, who has been taking notes from Prof. Hendrickson in NFL Edge 101 this training camp:
"It's like he hasn't missed a step. Same old All-Pro Trey," Stewart said. "I was running with him after practice to get more conditioning. Those are things you have to do to be what he is. All-Pro. Lead the league in sacks. Things of that sort. Extra things. Now I get to really follow in his footsteps."
Joey Boese flat out says it:
"I wouldn't be surprised if Trey has a phenomenal year. He's in tremendous shape. He trains like he practices. All out all the time."
Boese should know as one of head coach Zac Taylor’s confidants as the club's director of player performance and the head of strength and conditioning.
He brought the same approach to Hendrickson's training camp as he did to wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase’s August of last year. If they weren't on the field, Boese could shape a field for the position that they play.
"We made sure we're getting in enough high-speed running in there," Boese said. "Making sure we're doing enough specific position work with what he's going to be asked to do on the field. We made sure we got the proper work-to-rest ratio that would simulate him playing in a game."
They did work after practice and around meetings. Sometimes they did it before practice, where they'd grab lunch and then go hit the field. As long as they were both available. They'd text each other the night before and made sure they carved out an hour to run and an hour to lift.
Boese is the first to tell you that you can't simulate football without playing football. But…
"He's in great shape right now," Boese said. "There's obviously a little bit of callousing his body with shoulder pads, leaning on other people, and contact of it that we can't simulate. But I think he's very prepared to go in and have a great season."
They know each other well. Hendrickson has trained at Paycor Stadium during a couple of offseasons under Boese's staff. And the gag is that Hendrickson is in Boese's office so much, he's the fourth strength coach on a staff of three.
"He's like Ja'Marr when it comes to work ethic," Boese said. "You say, 'I want you to go hard now,' they go hard now. It makes it easier for me from a programming and planning standpoint. You know Trey. He's a no BS, no- nonsense guy. I think he's going to have a great year."
Special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons emphasized the field-goal operation heading into the offseason, and he never wavered trying to make it smoother. He had a tough call because three-year incumbent Cal Adomitis gave college free agent William Wagner everything he could handle in the preseason. After all, Evan McPherson made every kick no matter who was snapping.
In the end, though, it probably came down to what started it all. Wagner's accuracy snapping to holder Ryan Rehkow on PATs and field goals.
"It was tight. I think I pulled away a little bit at the end," Wagner said after practice. "I think my accuracy on short snaps and my accuracy on long snaps got better as I went. Blocking was really a factor. One of the things Darrin wanted to see was if I could block and I think I showed that I could."
Wagner notes he's the third player from Michigan's recruiting class of 2019 to make this roster, joining cornerbacks Dax Hill and DJ Turner II. And they all played with Bengals defensive tackle Kris Jenkins Jr., Michigan recruiting class of 2020.
Despite his lofty new spot, Wagner is sticking with his college transportation. A gray 2014 Toyota Tacoma. He starts talking about the pickup truck, and it starts sounding a little bit like a long snapper.
"Not flashy. A worker. Consistent," Wagner said. "I think I've had to bring it into the shop five times the entire time I've had it. I'm going to run that thing into the ground."
NEW QB
The Bengals on Wednesday opted to put well-traveled quarterback Brett Rypien on the practice squad after the Vikings cut him. A Boise State product who was a college free agent in Denver in 2019, Rypien has been in 10 career games with four starts for the Broncos from 2020-22 and the Rams in 2023. He also spent time on Seattle's practice squad and the Jets' active roster during that '23 season, then spent all last season on Minnesota's practice squad.
Clearly, a draw was that Rypien saw the similarities in head coach Zac Taylor's offense and what Rypien had with Sean McVay in Los Angeles and Kevin O'Connell with the Vikings.
(No coincidence the Bengals go to Minnesota in Week 3?)
"I had some good conversations with Zac," Rypien said after practice. "They do a great job getting their play makers in position, moving them around. There's a little bit of a carryover with L.A. and Sean and the Vikings. I've heard a lot of good things. I think it's a good decision for me at this point in my career."
He's also re-united with Bengals passing game coordinator Justin Rascati, an offensive quality control coach with the Broncos when Rypien signed in Denver.
"He's a smart guy who has been around the league and he can throw it," Rascati said. "He's a perfect fit for what we were looking for."
It's a small world, after all, now that Rypien is lockering next to backup quarterback Jake Browning.
"I've known Jake since we were 16," Rypien said.
Rypien is from Spokane, Wash., and went to Boise State, while Browning is from Folsom, Calif., and played at Washington. But they were both spinning it on the Coast. Browning was on Rypien's recruiting visit to Boise, and Rypien was on Browning's recruiting visit to Washington.
