Bengals LT Orlando Brown Jr. on Facing Ex-Teammate Trey Hendrickson Twice a Year: 'I'm Excited to Kick Some Ass'

CINCINNATI – Orlando Brown Jr. has faced Trey Hendrickson before in some high-profile Kansas City Chiefs vs. Cincinnati Bengals games, and some more head-to-head matchups are on the way.

With Brown signing a two-year extension with the Bengals today and Hendrickson agreeing to a four-year deal with the AFC North Division Baltimore Ravens on Tuesday, they’ll get to face each other at least twice a year through 2028.

But more than the four Bengals-Chiefs games in 2021 and 2022, maybe the best indication of what to expect from Brown and Hendrickson over the next three seasons is what happened on Day 1 of training camp in 2023.

On the second snap of team drills, Brown and Hendrickson got into a scuffle that left Hendrickson with bloody gashes on his neck, caused by the defensive end’s necklace gouging into his neck.

“I mean, I think it's just kind of our approach to the game of football, man. It's who he is,” Brown said about the 2023 fight. “I think about the first time I played him when I was in Kansas City in the AFC championship. To be honest, we fought there, too.

“That’s just the way our approach is, and I'm sure the film will reflect that when we suit up,” Brown added.

Given how well the two know each other, both in terms of personality, technique and moves, it begs the question – does the offensive player or defensive player have the edge when the familiarity runs so deep?

“That's hard to say,” Browns said. “But I will tell you I'm excited to kick some ass.

“I don't really care who I'm lining up against,” he added.

He does, however, care about who he is lining up with.

With Dalton Risner also signing this offseason, the Bengals are slated to have the same starting lineup from the season finale of one season to the season opener of the next since 2009-10.

“(It’s) very important, just being able to continue to grow amongst each other, continuing to grow our continuity between each other,” Brown said. “Our five that we rolled out there, including Dalton (Risner) at right guard, that group was special.

“I think of some of the other men in there like Jalen Rivers, Cody (Ford), Andrew Coker, Javon (Foster). Even some of the guys we lost like CV (Cordell Volson), Kirk (Jaxson Kirkland), I think it's important and so special what we started there,” he continued. “And just being able to come back and work with them means a lot.”

Brown negotiated his own extension with the Bengals, which gave him a new perspective on the process Hendrickson has been through with the Cincinnati front office the last several years.

The 29-year-old four-time Pro Bowler said he’s happy to see Hendrickson finally land the big, long-term extension he’s been seeking all along.

"I think it's great. I'm happy for him,” Brown said. “He earned that contract. It's a great situation for him. Now we get to see him twice a year. It will be a lot of fun.”