Cincinnati Bengals open 2025 training camp with Trey Hendrickson & Shemar Stewart holding out. Can the team fix its defense with key players missing?
StatPro NFL Beat Reporter
Welcome to the 2025 season, Who Dey Nation. The pads are out, the grass is freshly cut, but as the Cincinnati Bengals opened training camp today, the most important action wasn't on the field. Instead, all eyes are on the front office as star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson and top draft pick Shemar Stewart remain absent, locked in contract disputes that threaten to derail a pivotal season before it even begins.
After finishing with the league's 25th-ranked defense in 2024, the Bengals knew change was necessary. This probably wasn't the change they had in mind.
The biggest story of Day 1 has nothing to do with drills or conditioning. The absence of Trey Hendrickson and first-round pick Shemar Stewart looms over the entire organization. Hendrickson, the established heart of the pass rush, and Stewart, the high-profile rookie drafted to overhaul the defense, are both holding out. This creates a massive, immediate hole on the defensive line and sends a ripple of uncertainty through the locker room. For a team that can't afford another slow start, beginning camp without two cornerstone defenders is a worst-case scenario that tests the front office's resolve.
These holdouts are especially painful given the context of the offseason. The defense was the team's Achilles' heel in 2024, allowing 22.12 points per game and finishing 25th overall, a performance that led to the firing of defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo. The entire offseason was built around fixing that unit. With Sam Hubbard now retired, the pressure was already mounting on Myles Murphy to step up. The plan to inject new life with Stewart is on hold, and without Hendrickson's veteran leadership, a defense in desperate need of a new identity is instead facing a crisis before taking a single meaningful snap.
While the defense is in disarray, the offense remains a juggernaut. Joe Burrow is coming off a spectacular 4,918-yard, 36-touchdown season, Ja'Marr Chase dominated with 1,708 receiving yards, and Chase Brown nearly hit the 1,000-yard rushing mark. This unit can score on anyone. But as we saw last year, even that firepower isn't always enough. A turnover differential of zero and an offensive line that gave up 55 sacks show there are still vulnerabilities. Once again, the pressure falls on Burrow and company to be nearly perfect while the other side of the ball sorts itself out.
The Bengals' 2025 story is already being written, and the first chapter is one of conflict and uncertainty. The path to the playoffs doesn't run through brilliant offensive game plans alone; it runs through the negotiation table. How quickly GM Duke Tobin can resolve these contract impasses will determine whether this team is building toward a Super Bowl run or staring at another season of what-ifs. The clock is ticking, and every practice missed is a step in the wrong direction.
