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Cincinnati Bengals News & Rumors

Bengals WR Tee Higgins Had Shoulder Surgery

April 14th, 2022 at 10:04pm CST by Ben Levine

Tee Higgins recently went under the knife. The Bengals wideout had his labrum repaired last month, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). Fortunately, Higgins expects to be healthy in time for training camp.

“That’s the plan,” Higgins said (via NFL.com’s Kevin Patra). “Hell of a (Super Bowl) game, but it wasn’t the outcome me and my teammates expected. It’s going to motivate all of us, but we know what it takes to get back to the Super Bowl. That’s what we look forward to doing next season.”

Higgins initially suffered the shoulder injury early in the 2021 season. The receiver decided to put off surgery until the offseason, and with the Bengals making a run to the Super Bowl, Higgins wasn’t able to have the procedure until March. Even with the delayed response to the injury, it sounds like Higgins will still be on track for training camp.

The 2020 second-round pick built off a strong rookie campaign with an even better sophomore season. The 23-year-old finished the season with 74 receptions, 1,091 yards, and six touchdowns. He added another 18 catches in four playoff games, including a pair of touchdown receptions in the Super Bowl.

Bengals Re-Sign CB Tre Flowers

April 11th, 2022 at 12:52pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Bengals have retained a depth piece of their secondary. The team announced the recent re-signing of cornerback Tre Flowers; Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network adds that the deal is for one year and $1.85MM (Twitter link).

Flowers was a fifth-round pick of the Seahawks in 2018. He started 40 of 47 games in Seattle, totalling 196 tackles and three interceptions. His role was reduced in 2021, however, which signalled a departure in free agency was likely. He got a head start on that process when he asked for – and was granted – his release in October.

The Bengals claimed Flowers off waivers, adding the 26-year-old to their CB room. While he only registered one start in Cincinnati, he made 11 appearances in the regular season, and dressed for all four of the team’s playoff games. In his time with the Bengals, Flowers’ yards per completion against figure (9.6) was the lowest of his career, though he still received a PFF grade in line with his usual sub-par ratings.

Ahead of Flowers on the CB depth chart, the Bengals still have Chidobe Awuzie, Mike Hilton and Eli Apple. With Flowers back in the fold, though, they have experienced depth available at a low cost as they look to make another Super Bowl run.

Latest On Bengals S Jessie Bates

April 9th, 2022 at 12:48pm CST by Ben Levine

After the Bengals slapped safety Jessie Bates with the franchise tag, there was optimism that the two sides would eventually agree to an extension. However, USA Today’s Tyler Dragon reports (on Twitter) that the Bengals and Bates have not engaged in extension talks.

After working towards a contract extension over the past two years, Bates was ultimately tagged by the Bengals in March, locking the defensive back into a $12.911MM salary for the 2022 campaign. Bengals executive VP Katie Blackburn acknowledged that the two sides had gotten close to an extension, and she hinted that the front office could eventually reengage with Bates’ camp. The Bengals have until July 15 to sign the 25-year-old to a new deal.

“We obviously tried to get him re-signed last year,” Blackburn said.“Thought we had a good chance of getting that done but it didn’t quite get there. I think they wanted to see where the market went in free agency and at some point, we’ll circle back with him and see where we are.”

Bates had previously expressed dissatisfaction about the franchise tag, stating that the process is “tough; you only get one shot at this.” Had Bates reached free agency, he could have commanded one of the top safety salaries in the NFL. Justin Simmons, Kevin Byard, Marcus Williams, and Harrison Smith were previously thrown around as relevant comparisons to Bates; that quartet currently averages $14.8MM per season.

The 2018 second-round pick has spent his entire career in Cincinnati, including a 2020 campaign where he earned second-team All-Pro honors after finishing with 109 tackles and 15 passes defended. His numbers took a bit of a step back in 2021; Bates finished with career-lows in tackles (88), interceptions (one), and passes defended (four) in 15 starts. However, he showed up in four postseason games, collecting 20 tackles, six passes defended, and two picks.

Minor NFL Transactions: 4/8/22

April 8th, 2022 at 12:58pm CST by Zachary Links

We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:

Atlanta Falcons

Cincinnati Bengals

Dallas Cowboys

Los Angeles Chargers

New York Giants

  • Signed: OT Roy Mbaeteka

Minor NFL Transactions: 4/5/22

April 5th, 2022 at 7:35pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Tuesday’s minor moves:

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Denver Broncos

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Bengals Still Looking To Extend Jessie Bates

March 30th, 2022 at 3:56pm CST by Adam La Rose

One year ago, the Bengals prioritized a long-term extension for safety Jessie Bates. That never materialized, leaving both sides in a similar situation to the one they are in now. Despite the franchise tag being in place, a new deal is still the team’s goal, reports Kelsey Conway of the Cincinnati Enquirer. 

Bates would have been one of the top safeties on the market had he reached free agency. To no one’s surprise, though, the Bengals used the franchise tag on the 25-year-old earlier this month. That opened up a negotiating window which lasts until July 15 for the two sides to agree on a new deal. If that doesn’t happen, he will earn $12.9MM in 2022.

“We obviously tried to get him re-signed last year”, said Bengals executive VP Katie Blackburn. “Thought we had a good chance of getting that done but it didn’t quite get there. I think they wanted to see where the market went in free agency and at some point, we’ll circle back with him and see where we are.”

Bates had an underwhelming regular season in 2021, recording 88 tackles and one interception. He had two picks and four pass breakups in a more true-to-form postseason, however. That could help him land a contract placing him amongst the highest-paid safeties in the league. Conway names Justin Simmons, Kevin Byard, Marcus Williams and Harrison Smith as relevant comparisons to Bates, given his skillset; that quartet currently averages $14.8MM per season.

While nothing seems imminent regarding contract talks between the two sides, this situation will certainly be one to follow throughout the spring.

Contract Details: Miller, Robinson, Reddick, Mariota, Jensen, Collins, Brown, Norwell

March 22nd, 2022 at 4:02pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are the latest details from contracts recently agreed to across the league, starting with the Bills’ big-ticket deal for a future Hall of Fame edge rusher:

  • Von Miller, LB (Bills): Six years, $120MM. Miller’s deal includes $51.44MM guaranteed. The Bills will keep Miller’s early base salaries low; he is tied to $1.1MM (2022) and $1.3MM (’23) salaries, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com tweets. Miller has a $13.34MM roster bonus due in 2023, and Albert Breer of SI.com tweets his deal includes $50MM over the first two years. His $17.1MM, $19.6MM and $29.6MM salaries from 2025-27 are nonguaranteed.
  • Allen Robinson, WR (Rams): Three years, $46.5MM. Robinson is attached to guaranteed base salaries of $1.5MM and $10MM in 2022 and ’23, respectively, per Wilson (on Twitter). The contract includes a $5.75MM roster bonus on Day 5 of the 2024 league year. If Robinson surpasses 2,200 receiving yards in the regular season and playoffs during the 2022 or ’23 seasons, Wilson adds his 2024 year will void (Twitter link). Only Cooper Kupp has accomplished that feat in a season.
  • Haason Reddick, DE (Eagles): Three years, $45MM. Reddick, who is guaranteed $30MM, is tethered to base salaries of just $1MM and $1.1MM in 2022 and 2023, per Wilson (on Twitter). His $13.75MM 2024 salary is nonguaranteed. The Eagles tacked three void years onto the deal for cap purposes. Reddick will collect a $13.7MM roster bonus in 2023.
  • Ryan Jensen, C (Buccaneers): Three years, $39MM. Jensen’s deal includes $26.5MM guaranteed. The Bucs center is tied to a $1.5MM base salary in 2022 and a $12.5MM base in 2023, Wilson tweets. Jensen’s 2023 salary is partially guaranteed at signing; it will become fully guaranteed if he is on Tampa Bay’s roster by Day 5 of the 2023 league year. A $1.5MM 2024 roster bonus resides in this deal as well. The Bucs included two void years here for cap purposes.
  • La’el Collins, T (Bengals): Three years, $30MM. The contract is closer to a two-year, $20MM pact, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, with Year 3 being included for cap purposes (Twitter link). It appears Cincinnati has dipped into the void-year realm, though is not clear just yet how this contract is structured.
  • Marcus Mariota, QB (Falcons): Two years, $18.75MM. This deal veers closer to a one-year pact. Mariota is due $6.75MM in 2022, but NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero notes (on Twitter) a $12MM 2023 option is included in this contract. A key point for Mariota’s Atlanta future will arrive on Day 5 of the 2023 league year, when a $3MM roster bonus is due.
  • Trent Brown, T (Patriots): Two years, $13MM. Brown will see $4MM guaranteed, Pelissero tweets. The veteran right tackle can earn up to $22MM on the contract.
  • Andrew Norwell, G (Commanders): Two years, $10MM. Norwell will collect $5.7MM guaranteed, Wilson tweets. He is set to earn $1.2MM and $3.54MM in base salary, with Wilson adding Washington added three void years onto this deal.

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/22/22

March 22nd, 2022 at 3:44pm CST by Adam La Rose

Here are today’s minor moves around the NFL:

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Kansas City Chiefs

Minnesota Vikings

Pittsburgh Steelers

Packers To Sign DL Jarran Reed

March 22nd, 2022 at 3:29pm CST by Sam Robinson

Jarran Reed is set to play for a third team in three seasons. The former Seahawks and Chiefs defensive lineman is signing with the Packers, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. The Bengals also met with Reed recently, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com adds, but he will head to Wisconsin.

The six-year veteran visited the Packers on Tuesday and will join a defensive line also housing Kenny Clark. This marked the third straight offseason in which Reed hit free agency. The Seahawks locked him up on a short-term deal in 2020, but that relationship quickly deteriorated and has led to a nomadic journey for the talented interior D-lineman.

Seattle gave Reed a longer-term deal, but an unusual development led to his exit. Reed refused to restructure his two-year, $23MM pact in 2021, leading to the Seahawks cutting him. The Chiefs gave Reed a one-year, $5.5MM deal and used him as a 17-game starter.

A former second-round pick out of Alabama, Reed zoomed onto the extension radar after a 10.5-sack 2018 season. A six-game suspension stalled Reed’s momentum in 2019, when he finished with just two sacks. He recorded 6.5 in 2020 and 2.5 last season, adding two forced fumbles and 12 QB hits during his one Chiefs campaign. Reed has also tallied three postseason sacks over the past two seasons.

Reed, 29, has been a highly durable player throughout his career. Excepting the suspension-induced hiatus, he has never missed more than one game in a season. The Packers will look to Reed as a supporting-caster, with Clark, Rashan Gary and Preston Smith set to spearhead their pass rush post-Za’Darius Smith. This will be Reed’s first run in a 3-4 defense, though these transitions have become less notable given the increased usages of sub-packages.

Since trading Davante Adams to the Raiders, the Packers have used some of the freed-up funds to address other areas. They have since signed Reed and reached agreements to bring back Rasul Douglas and Robert Tonyan.

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