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          Cincinnati Bengals DE Trey Hendrickson clears concussion protocol, OK to play Saturday

          • Ben Baby, ESPN Staff WriterJan 20, 2022, 05:44 PM
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              Ben Baby covers the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN. He joined the company in July 2019. Prior to ESPN, he worked for various newspapers in Texas, most recently at The Dallas Morning News where he covered college sports. He provides daily coverage of the Bengals for ESPN.com, while making appearances on SportsCenter, ESPN's NFL shows and ESPN Radio programs. A native of Grapevine, Texas, he graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor's degree in journalism. He is an adjunct journalism professor at Southern Methodist University and a member of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA).
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          CINCINNATI -- The Bengals will have their top pass-rusher available for Saturday's playoff game.

          Defensive end Trey Hendrickson successfully cleared the concussion protocol and will play against the Tennessee Titans in the teams' AFC divisional-round playoff game, Bengals coach Zac Taylor said on Thursday.

          "He's been in these moments before," Taylor said in a teleconference with local reporters. "He's one of our premier players. It's good to have him."

          Hendrickson left the team's 26-19 wild-card-round win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Jan. 15 and entered the league's concussion protocol. He made progress toward returning throughout the week, starting with limited participation at Tuesday's practice and then practicing in full on Wednesday.

          Since signing with the Bengals in the 2021 offseason on a four-year, $60 million deal, Hendrickson has been one of the best pass-rushers in the NFL. In the 2021 season, he tallied 14 sacks, which led the team and is the most in a single season in Bengals history since sacks became an official statistic in 1982. He also ranked ninth in the NFL in pass rush win rate among edge rushers during the regular season, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.

          The return of Hendrickson boosts a defensive line that will still be short-handed against the top-seeded Titans. Bengals defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi was placed on season-ending injured reserve earlier in the week. He left the win over Las Vegas with a foot injury and tweeted on Thursday that he had successful surgery.

          Saturday's game against Tennessee is Cincinnati's first divisional-round game since January 1991. The Bengals are looking to make their first appearance in the AFC Championship Game since 1988.