The Bengals were unable to work out an extension agreement with Ja’Marr Chase last offseason, and the decision to use the franchise tag on Tee Higgins led to doubt about his future beyond 2024. In the case of both receivers, the team remains intent on inking both to long-term deals.
Chase in particular will require an historic investment in the wake of Justin Jefferson resetting the market for non-quarterbacks last year. Chase’s LSU teammate secured $35MM per year on average from the Vikings, but a new Bengals deal will check in at a higher rate. Coming off the back of a triple-crown season, Chase has been connected to an asking price of $40MM per season.
In spite of the organization’s track record regarding massive player investments, reaching an agreement at least in the vicinity of that figure is the target. De facto general manager Duke Tobin said on Tuesday (via ESPN’s Adam Schefter) the Bengals are planning to “reward” Chase by making him the highest-paid non-QB in NFL history. Head coach Zac Taylor echoed that sentiment when speaking to the media (h/t Kelsey Conway of the Cincinnati Enquirer).
As Joe Burrow has turned up the heat on the franchise regarding doing what it takes to retain Higgins and Trey Hendrickson, Tobin has offered some support that the QB will see a positive outcome here. The longtime Bengals exec said (via The Athletic’s Paul Dehner Jr.) he is optimistic extensions for all three are doable.
The Bengals are paying for delaying the Chase deal, as the hesitancy — a delay not shown by the Eagles and Dolphins with first-rounders DeVonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle — preceded a price-raising season from the 2021 fifth overall pick. Miami and Philly became the first teams — in the fifth-year option era — to extend a first-round wideout with two years of rookie-deal control remaining. Mike Brown said early in training camp the Bengals were unlikely to follow suit. Although the team was believed to have come close to extending Chase before last season, not doing so will lead to a bigger payment being required. While surpassing Jefferson’s $35MM AAV is one matter, a team not known for post-Year 1 guarantees going past the $88.7MM the Vikings fully guaranteed their All-Pro wideout is another.
Regarding Higgins, the Bengals paying him would contradict a years-long expectation. Higgins had been expected to depart, via free agency defection or tag-and-trade transaction, for a while. Last month, Tobin said the team would aim to re-sign Higgins at the “right number.” It would seem Burrow’s efforts, years after Carson Palmer forced his way out due to frustration with the organization’s transactional aggressiveness, are not going unnoticed in the Cincinnati building.
Hendrickson is eyeing a lucrative fourth contract, after tacking a one-year extension onto his initial Bengals agreement, and would be OK if it came after a trade. The All-Pro defensive end wants a quick resolution, however. Like Chase, one season remains on Hendrickson’s deal. For all the criticisms lobbed the Bengals’ way regarding contract matters, they do have a recent history of authorizing third contracts for D-linemen. They paid both Geno Atkins and Carlos Dunlap in 2018. Of course, paying Hendrickson with Burrow tied to a $55MM-per-year deal is a different matter even with the recent cap spikes considered.
As we detailed in a recent Trade Rumors Front Office piece, how the Bengals proceed this offseason may well affect their long-term relationship with Burrow. The superstar QB will undoubtedly be monitoring these situations closely, with the Higgins matter — expected to produce at least a placeholder franchise tag — first on the docket.
Sam Robinson contributed to this post.
Pure geniuses
If Burrow is set on them retaining Chase, Higgins and Hendrickson long term he’d better be ready to rework his deal and take less money because that’s the only way all 4 of them will be there long term.
In my opinion they’re going to sign Chase for 38 million, tag Higgins for next year and let Hendrickson walk after next season. It will be interesting trying to give Joe what he wants and field a competitive team. Mike Brown will probably never get on board with deferred money.
Could have done it last year and saved themselves money.
They wanted to tag Higgins to give themselves the leverage of them obviously being willing to do that for a better receiver. Chase still has plenty of leverage if he can stay healthy. With Burrow throwing to him he’ll keep putting up monster numbers. I imagine he’ll end up getting like 5-185, with a record guarantee for a non-QB
Yes but my point was if the Bengals weren’t cheap they could have signed him for cheaper last off. He was offered the same AAV as Jefferson last season but not the same guarantee because the Bengals are cheap. Them being cheap last year is going to cost them money now.
He tried to stare down Mike Brown. Show up for camp and sit. You’re under contract, play ball. Carson Palmer tried to have a staring contest with Brown and found himself in Oakland. Brown will pay, but it wasn’t being cheap it was to show who’s in charge. They haven’t been cheap since the 90’s.
They literally sold the naming rights to the stadium so they could pay Burrow. Also I love how we only hold the players accountable when we talk about contracts. The whole your “under contract play ball” funny how I never see people say that when a team cuts a player with 2 years left on the deal. Nobody is ever in the comment section saying pay your contract to these billionaires.
Since the last QB turned GM, Aaron in NY, turned out so poorly; the bengals plan to follow suit.
The genie is out of the bottle so all the top paid QBs will be insisting they have some input on offensive roster decisions. I suppose the owners were too dumb to anticipate this would eventually happen… so they have nobody but themselves to blame.
I remember when Deshawn Watson insisted on being part of the head coaching search in Houston. Casario likely just laughed.
The difference is of course that Burrow is in his prime while the other guy was misidentified as someone who still has something left in the tank
I don’t know how the Bengals will do it—they have an exciting offense but need a defensive overhaul—where the money is concerned overall. But it wouldn’t take much to have this team contending for the AFC crown at least, should they somehow get financially creative
Throw in a weekly delivery of Kielbasa, just to make sure the deal gets done!
Those rams years of the greatest show on turf shows what a high octane offense can lead to. Draft purely on defense and field an above average O-line and they’ll be in conversation for the Lombardi trophy for a number of years.
They just need to start actually drafting and developing defensive players better, because they’ve tried to take that approach to some degree, but have had some lousy results. Murphy hasn’t started a single game in two years since being drafted in the first round.
Keeping Chase, Higgins and Hendrickson happy takes a huge monetary commitment…quite naturally. With this in mind, will there be enough cash leftover to go around the “room”.
Joe B, if need be, restructure your deal with the stipulation that the freed up money only goes to your boys on the O line.
Yeah, agreed
I know it’s not prudent to take hometown discounts or to restructure so as to build a strong team, but it seems that’s often the issue when there’s a great deal of individual talent but it’s not translating to constructing a true contender
It doesn’t cost a player anything to restructure a deal and I’m sure Burrow would do it. It’s the Bengals that don’t like pushing money into the future, even when it’s good business.
Those bills come due sometime in the future. How many teams are way over the cap and having to cut good vets because they’re still paying somebody from 5 years ago.
Not that many, really. The Saints have constantly kicked the can down the road while also trading away draft picks like crazy. That’s a tough recipe. Same with the Cowboys always wanting to extend every somewhat successful draft pick while waiting to extend their biggest stars. Also a bad way to do things. But Philadelphia always structures or restructures contracts to defer money or have void years, and it’s worked out great for them. After the 2017 Super Bowl win they ended up having to take one down year to cleanse their cap in 2020 (in part because Wentz was a disaster), but they were in the Super Bowl again twice pretty quickly. Dead money isn’t in and of itself a bad thing if ownership is willing to spend a little extra cash.