NFL fans float wild Bengals trade scenario amid Terry McLaurin drama

Is there really no such thing as a bad idea? For the Cincinnati Bengals, it probably isn't advisable to even entertain a trade for disgruntled Washington Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin. Nevertheless, these types of outlandish scenarios can sustain NFL fans until the real games begin.

There is plenty of positive buzz coming out of Bengals camp, especially afterJoe Burrow sounded off on the "positive tension" he feels in the building that was lacking in years past. A predominantly positive offseason is overshadowed by Trey Hendrickson's ongoing contract spat, though, which isn't dissimilar to what McLaurin is enduring in Washington.

Considering the Bengals already shelled out big money for stud receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, it'd be so out of character for them to wheel and deal for McLaurin in the wake of his trade request. Then again, there's some hilarious chatter in certain corners of Bengals fandom that imagines what the world would look like with a Chase-Higgins-McLaurin power trio in Cincinnati.

NFL Twitter/X erupts over Bengals' outrageous Terry McLaurin-for-Trey Hendrickson trade scenario

One stranger-than-fiction solution to the superstar contract woes for both the Commanders and Bengals would be to swap Terry McLaurin for Trey Hendrickson. Straight-up.

Given that Cincinnati could technically fit McLaurin under the cap if Hendrickson were out of the picture, imaginations are running wild on social media at the prospect of the Commanders playmaker suiting up in the Orange and Black stripes. The idea appeared to first be floated by NFL YouTube star Brett Kollmann.

Here are some of the reactions that stemmed from Kollmann's initial pitch, including the implicit McLaurin-for-Hendrickson exchange:

Then, my guy Willie Lutz, who co-hosts the Bleav Network's Bengals-centric podcast Matt & Willie Know Ball, fanned the flames of this explosive possibility:

While the prospect of this new-look Bengals wide receiver trio is a nightmarish one for opposing defenses, it's quite impractical on a number of levels.

Beyond Cincinnati's aforementioned, hefty investments in Chase and Higgins, the departure of Hendrickson would put the Bengals' defensive unit in serious peril. Hendrickson is the only proven pass-rush threat on the defensive front, posting 17.5 sacks in each of the last two seasons. Safe to say it's terrifying for Who Dey Nation to fathom how toothless the d-line would be without him.

Look no further than the team the Bengals are chasing atop the AFC North. They scored a combined 72 points in two meetings with the Ravens in 2024, yet lost both of those divisional matchups.

McLaurin wouldn't be too thrilled to land in Cincinnati, either. Despite some Buckeye State ties as a former Ohio State star, the 29-year-old would have trouble backing up his second-team All-Pro 2024 campaign with big numbers in the Bengals' passing attack. Chase and Higgins command such a large target share as is, and that's not to even speak of the other incumbent pass-catchers Joe Burrow has built a rapport with, such as Andrei Iosivas and Mike Gesicki.

All that said, it'd be objectively hysterical to see Cincinnati top-heavy its roster with three top-tier receivers and just pray for a monster rookie year from first-round pick/athletic freak of freaks Shemar Stewart. There is a world where Stewart's ability to disrupt, combined with improved play from the Bengals' secondary, makes trading Hendrickson ever so slightly more palatable.

If you're Scary Terry, how fun would it be, just for one year, to chase a Super Bowl in Cincinnati with Joe Brrr chucking you the rock, while getting any matchup you want alongside the likes of Chase and Higgins?

This trade will never happen. It shouldn't happen. Neither team should want this trade to happen. McLaurin is the clear WR1 in Washington, armed with a dynamic quarterback of his own in Jayden Daniels. The Commanders depriving their ascending QB of his only proven weapon would be a bold strategy to say the least. The Daniels-McLaurin connection helped power Washington to the NFC Championship Game after all.

Oh yeah, and one of the early losses that kept my beloved Bengals out of the playoffs came courtesy of the Daniels-to-McLaurin strike at the end of this all-22 film:

The pain. Anyway, bottom line is, this whole hypothetical McLaurin/Hendrickson swap had me cackling. We're just having fun here, everyone. The season will be here before we know it.

Until Hendrickson and McLaurin sign with their respective teams on the dotted line, however, there is a nonzero chance — albeit as infinitesimal as infinitesimal comes — that this NFL landscape-quaking trade could come to pass.

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