The internet is going to will a Lions' blockbuster trade into existence if it's the last thing it does. I don't know when it'll take place, or who's going to be involved, but it's going to happen – there's simply been way too much tweeting for nothing to take place. (That is, to my understanding, how the NFL offseason works.)
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We know what direction it might head in – the Lions desperately could use some help at edge rusher, like basically every team outside of the NFC East. For a while that meant Maxx Crosby, and then for a little bit it meant Myles Garrett. Now, like Bleacher Report talks about in their latest list of NFL trade candidates, it means Bengals star Trey Hendrickson.
Bleacher Report won't sleep until the Lions trade for Trey Hendrickson
"The Cincinnati Bengals and pass-rusher Trey Hendrickson have reportedly resumed contract talks, but that doesn't mean the two sides are any closer to getting a deal done ... Cincinnati's apparent reluctance to move the 30-year-old keeps him out of the top spot on our board. From a production standpoint, though, he's the best defender who could be available. The NFL's reigning sacks leader has racked up 17.5 quarterback takedowns in each of the past two seasons. Virtually any team in need of pass-rushing help should be asking about his availability. Two teams that would make a ton of sense are the Indianapolis Colts and the Detroit Lions. Indy lost pass-rusher Dayo Odeyingbo to the Bears in free agency and also happen to employ former Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo. The Lions have long needed a quality second edge-rusher opposite Aidan Hutchinson. They have Marcus Davenport in that role currently, but Hendrickson would be a clear and obvious upgrade."
I mean, no argument here. It sorta feels like the Bengals and Hendrickson are going to figure things out eventually, but it is the Bengals, so you just never truly know. Hendrickson and Hutchinson together would be electric, and it'd certainly make up for the otherwise-very-underwhelming offseason that's taken place in Detroit this year. And while a lot of this comes across more as wishful thinking than any sort of actual prediction, it's not a hard argument to make. The NFC North is going to be better this year, and right now, the Lions look worse. If Detroit *was* going to panic about that, they could do much worse than trading for one of the best pass rushers in football.