Bengals Beat: Trey Hendrickson (2nd Opinion) Likely Headed For Surgery, Tee Higgins Back In Concussion Protocol, Jermaine Burton Era Finally Draws to A Close

CINCINNATI — Monday was hardly a normal day-after for the Bengals. Three significant news stories broke regarding three players that will affect the roster going forward for however long the 2025 Bengals season lasts.

Has Trey Hendrickson played his last snap with the Bengals?

That possibility grew dramatically Monday with the news that the All-Pro defensive end will likely pursue surgery for a core muscle injury, surgery that would end his season.

Hendrickson was initially injured in Week 6 vs. Green Bay , missed the Thursday night win over Pittsburgh and then returned against the Jets on Oct. 26. He suffered a blindside shot right before halftime from Jets offensive guard John Simpson, who drilled him to the ground. Hendrickson hasn’t played since, missing the last five games.

After becoming the first Bengal ever to lead the NFL in sacks, with 17.5 in 2024, Hendrickson, who signed a one-year, $29 million deal to end his sometimes stormy hold-in with the Bengals, had four sacks through seven games before his core muscle/hip injury sidelined him. Hendrickson has been remarkably productive in his four previous seasons with the Bengals, recording 14 sacks in 2021, eight in 2022, and 17.5 in ’23 and ’24.

Now, if Hendrickson choose to go ahead with the surgery, his season will be over and barring the Bengals placing the franchise tag on him, the 31-year-old will look for much greener pastures elsewhere.

Then there’s Tee Higgins.

His injury situation is much more cloudy. He came out of concussion protocol after hitting his head hard on the turf in the fourth quarter against New England on Nov. 23. He missed the game against Baltimore on Nov. 27 before returning Sunday against Buffalo.

He took a pair of visits to the medical tent Sunday, once in the second quarter on an incomplete pass out of bounds on the Bills sideline. With 3:40 remaining in the second quarter, he fell hard to the turf and made his way off the field and to the the tent. Then, on a crossing pattern midway through the fourth quarter, he caught a pass from Joe Burrow on third down and the 16-yard completion was good for first down but he was brought down awkwardly and made he way to the tent again and again, was cleared to return.

He eventually returned and caught his second touchdown of the day, a leaping one-handed grab in the back corner of the end zone, and again his head came down hard on the turf. In all three cases Sunday, he pointed to his head. After the game, Higgins reported some symptoms and then reported more on Monday morning after flying home from Buffalo on Sunday night.

This raised questions Monday about the protocol process and whether the NFL did enough to protect him. The NFL and NFL Players Association released a joint statement on Monday afternoon.

“Tee Higgins was evaluated twice in game and cleared to return. After the game, in discussion with club medical personnel as part of a postgame evaluation, he notified the team he was experiencing symptoms and was immediately placed in the concussion protocol.”

“He made some enormous plays for in the game,” Bengals head coach Zac Taylor said. “And so again, he comes up really big in big moments. He’s a guy that Joe can trust. So, proud of the way that he handled all of that.”

How did Zac Taylor know if he had Higgins at the ready during the game? Those conversations take place between the independent NFL-assigned spotter, Bengals athletic trainer Matt Summers and the player. Then Summers communicates the player’s status directly to the coach.

“I’m just told if he’s available or not. I think what happened (Sunday) was obviously there was some that looked bad,” Taylor said. “Tee looked good throughout it, is what I’ve gained throughout the game and postgame, obviously. He did, this morning and last night, have symptoms again. So we’ll put him back into protocol. But again, I talked to Tee one-on-one, too, on when did (he) feel this, because you’re worried about the guy. ‘Did you feel it during the game?’ ‘No, I felt fine. I took hits. I got up, I felt fine.’ And after the fact, reported that he felt concussion symptoms. So we’ll put him back in the protocol and we’ll go through that this week.”

Does Taylor regret anything about how he handled things?

“No because in the game, you don’t really see it all,” Taylor said. “And the first one happens on their sideline. Probably you all have a better perspective than anyone on our sidelines. And again, the way he talks to me about is, ‘I got hit.’ So I’m shaken up on the play just from a football hit. By the time the doctors got out there, I felt fine. I got up and was good.’ Cleared everything. And then postgame, you get on the plane and come in this morning and he’s doing the right thing and saying, ‘OK, now I don’t feel great.’ So we’ll put him back in the protocol.”

The Bengals Monday finally decided enough was enough with Jermaine Burton.

The 2024 third-round draft pick from Alabama was released by the team after being suspended for Sunday’s game in Buffalo. After the receiver did not travel with the team Saturday to Western New York, the team announced that he remained back in Cincinnati due to a non-injury related matter.

Then on Sunday he was suspended for the game and listed among the inactives. On Monday, the Bengals released the 24-year-old receiver who did not play a single game this season after the team gave him a chance in the spring to rehab his image after a checkered rookie season in 2024.

“Just a decision to make. We just made it, going to release him and move on and wish him the best,” Taylor said. “I think everybody worked really hard at it and wish him the best. Hopefully he gets to change a scenery and can do good things for him.”

Taylor would not get into the details of what precipitated his suspension over the weekend.

Taylor famously pounded his fist on the table in the Bengals war room in jubilation on the second night of the 2024 draft after realizing the Bengals got the talented receiver out of Alabama.

Burton attended all of the OTA and minicamp practices and appeared to be on the right track, even getting some first-team reps in camp. But then he failed to make a lasting impression and couldn’t break a rotation of receivers that included Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Andrei Iosivas, Mitch Tinsley and Charlie Jones.

His best hope for making a positive impression came on special teams as a returner but he couldn’t beat out the likes of Jones, Samaje Perine, rookie Tahj Brooks and Tinsley for playing time. Even Kendric Pryor was getting more reps at certain parts of the season.

In his rookie season of 2024, Burton was dressed for 14 games, caught four passes for 107 yards and no touchdowns. Burton suffered through multiple discipline issues in his rookie season, including missing morning team meetings and practices on several occasions. He also had reported allegations of domestic disputes (no charges filed) and missed rent payments and eviction notices on two different housing properties. Despite all this, the Bengals offered him another lifeline on his career this season. After Monday’s release, Burton’s only hope is for another team to extend that lifeline and take a chance on the raw talent he showed in college.

Bengals-Dolphins flexed:

The NFL did the expected Monday and flexed the Bengals out of the 8:20 pm ET Sunday night slot on Dec. 21 in Miami. The Bengals will now kickoff at 1 p.m. against the Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. Taking the spot of the Bengals-Dolphins will be the Patriots-Ravens, with the Patriots figuring to be playing for the No. 1 seed in the AFC as well as the AFC East crown.

Waiting on Shemar:

Taylor indicated Monday that they’ll have a better idea on Wednesday as to whether the team could activate the 21-day window to return from injured reserve. Stewart has been dealing with ankle and knee issues over the last two months and hasn’t played since injuring his knee against the Bears on Nov. 2.