With Ja’Marr Chase still on a rookie contract and Joe Burrow‘s extension not set to produce lofty cap numbers until 2025, the Bengals took advantage of circumstances to use the franchise tag on Tee Higgins. Of the nine franchise- or transition-tagged players this year, Higgins became the only one not extended.
This rental setup has never looked likely to lead to a long-term deal, with a low-ball extension offer underwhelming Cincinnati’s No. 2 wideout. The sides are not believed to have engaged in substantive discussions since early 2023. As Chase puts together a dominant season that should probably be expected to net him the NFL’s top receiver contract in 2025, Higgins looks to be on the verge of relocating. The prospect of a second franchise tag looms, but it would be pricey for the Bengals.
As it stands, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler notes the expectation is for Higgins to be elsewhere next year. Going further, Fowler offers that there is “little to no chance” Higgins is a Bengal beyond 2024. This prospect raises the stakes for the former second-round pick, whom the Bengals denied from testing free agency this year. If permitted to reach the market in 2025, Higgins figures to do very well.
The Bengals are projected to hold more than $65MM in cap space next year; that accounts for Chase’s fifth-year option number and Burrow’s cap spike. Chase counts $21.82MM on Cincy’s 2025 cap, with that number matching Higgins’ current franchise tender. Burrow’s cap hit will balloon from $29.6MM this year to $46.3MM in 2025. Still, it should not necessarily be considered a lock the Bengals pass on a tag-and-trade scenario for Higgins, as the two-time 1,000-yard receiver could certainly fetch an asset if moved that way.
Cincinnati would need to weigh how a $26.2MM Higgins tag for next year would affect its budget and whether the return would would match a potential third-round compensatory pick, one that would arrive in 2026. The Packers collected first- and second-round picks from the Raiders for Davante Adams in 2022. Higgins is not in that class, but the Dolphins received a third-rounder for Jarvis Landry in a tag-and-trade scenario in 2018. That would seem realistic for a player who has been valuable to the Bengals’ 2020s resurgence. Those are the only two WR tag-and-trade moves over the past 10 years.
Higgins, 25, has some work to do to hit 1,000 yards during the season’s second half. He is sitting on 341, having missed five games due to injuries. These issues will affect his market, though plenty of teams will be interested in a player who has long been considered a potential No. 1 wideout playing in the role of a WR2 thanks to Chase’s presence. Higgins totaled 1,091 yards in 2021 and helped the Bengals to Super Bowl LVI; he then hit 1,029 to boost the team back to the AFC championship game. A 2023 season plagued by injury and Burrow’s wrist setback limited Higgins last year, and no significant extension talks transpired this offseason.
Teams called on Higgins at the past two deadlines; the Bengals, as expected, did not bite. Higgins remains key to Cincy’s hopes at steering this season toward a wild-card berth. The 6-foot-4 weapon joined Trey Hendrickson in requesting a trade this offseason but soon acknowledged he considered an exit unlikely. The Bengals are not believed to have offered a deal that came especially close to $20MM per year when negotiating in 2023. With the market having spiked (and with Chase’s likely 2025 extension poised to raise the ceiling higher), Higgins should expect to do better than $20MM per annum if he tests the market next year.
The Bengals have not seen Jermaine Burton progress much as a rookie but have seen sporadic production from 2023 sixth-rounder Andrei Iosivas, who has 17 receptions for 228 yards and four touchdowns this season. With a potential Higgins exit on the radar for a while, the Bengals have had time to map out their receiver situation. They would still likely pursue more help to replace Higgins, and it looks like — whether a separation comes through a free agency defection or a tag-and-trade maneuver — that reality will come to pass next year.
