Dallas Cowboys' Trey Hendrickson Free Agency Dream Appears To Be Fading

The Dallas Cowboys entered the legal tampering period ahead of NFL free agency as one of the teams linked to star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson, who remains unsigned following the first day of negotiations.

Dallas had been monitoring the situation, but it looks like they may no longer be serious players in the Hendrickson sweepstakes.

The Cowboys started Monday by trading for Green Bay Packers pass rusher Rashan Gary, which appears to have knocked the team out of the EDGE market. Two Cowboys insiders shared the sentiment late Monday night.

"Don’t think anyone expected the EDGE market to explode how it did today. Not expecting Dallas to be major players for Trey Hendrickson at this point in time," Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram wrote on X. "A lot of others are off the board. Might be time to hunt in tier 2/3 for depth pieces and draft one."

Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson celebrates as time winds down against the Cleveland Browns at Huntington Bank Field | Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Jane Slater of the NFL Network also poured cold water on the hopes of landing Hendrickson.

"Could be waiting for numbers to drop but was told they aren’t in the market for another high cost DE here," she wrote on X.

Last season, Hendrickson was limited to just seven games, totaling 16 tackles and four sacks. However, in 2024, he led the league in sacks with 17.5, marking the second consecutive year that he recorded 17.5 sacks and the fourth time in five years that he tallied double-digit sacks.

At 31 years old, Hendrickson comes as a cheaper option than Las Vegas Raiders star Maxx Crosby, who the Cowboys missed out on over the weekend. The Raiders ultimately agreed to a trade with the Baltimore Ravens, landing Crosby for two first-round picks.

Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson celebrates a sack against the Baltimore Ravens | Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

It will be interestering to see if the interest reignites between the two sides, or whether the Cowboys ultimately turn their attention toward maximizing their two first-round picks in the spring.

Any deal that is agreed in the coming days can not become official until the new league year kicks off on Wednesday, March 11, at 4:00 p.m. ET.

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