Bengals add DE K.J. Henry off waivers
Defensive end K.J. Henry’s time with the Commanders ended after one season, but he found a landing spot with the Bengals.
The NFL’s transaction report shows that the Bengals claimed Henry and added him to their roster on Wednesday. Henry was let go as the Commanders slashed their roster to 53 players on Tuesday.
Henry was a third-round pick in 2023, but the Commanders cut him and four others from that draft class as the new regime in Washington made it clear they didn’t think much of what their predecessors did last year. Henry had 19 tackles and 1.5 sacks as a rookie.
The Bengals lost Cam Sample for the season to an Achilles tear and Myles Murphy is out for several weeks with a knee injury, so Henry provides some needed depth behind Sam Hubbard and Trey Hendrickson in Cincinnati.
The Cincinnati Bengals have claimed KJ Henry off of waivers from the Washington Commanders, it was announced Wednesday.
A 2023 fifth-round NFL Draft pick of the Commanders, Henry appeared in 10 games (three starts) in his rookie campaign, recording 19 total tackles, four tackles for loss, two pass deflections, two QB hits, and 1.5 sacks. He earned a 56.9 PFF grade.
In this year’s preseason with Washington, the 6-foot-4, 255-pound Henry racked up 10 pressures (one sack and nine hurries) in just 51 pass-rushing snaps while earning a standout 82.9 PFF grade.
This move makes perfect sense, as Henry was easily one of the best defensive ends to hit the waiver wire following Tuesday’s cutdown deadline. With Myles Murphy now on IR for at least the first four games, getting another edge player was needed heading into the regular season.
Ironically, Henry played with Murphy for the Clemson Tigers. Current defensive line coach Marion Hobby also coached at Clemson from 2011-16.
Heading into the 2023 draft, Lance Zierlein compared Henry to former NFL standout Lorenzo Carter and gave him a Round 4-5 grade.
“Highly athletic edge defender with good size. Henry has upfield burst, but he tends to be a face-up rusher and will need to improve his hand usage for more effective corner turns,” wrote Zierlein. He can be dynamic when twisting and blitzing as a moveable piece around the defensive front and he does a nice job of setting up a buttery smooth inside rush that is often too quick for tackles. He can dart and disrupt as a one-gapper with his hand in the ground but has more trouble than expected in setting firm edges as a run defender. Henry’s strengths and weaknesses are well-defined, with the upside to become a starter.”
