Trey Hendrickson has used his voice to publicly express his desire for a new deal, and recently, his tone has taken a harsh turn as contract negotiations with the Cincinnati Bengals have stalled over the last few weeks.

The Cincinnati Bengals and Trey Hendrickson are at a crossroads. Broadly speaking, it's because they can't reach a contract extension agreement. But really, there's likely one specific holdup in the negotiations that could lead to a Hendrickson holdout if the problem isn't cleared up.

It's gotten so bad that Hendrickson said he will not play for the Bengals in 2025 without a new deal. He's even using a shark attack metaphor to describe why he's on the defensive with Cincinnati on the contract dispute.