A.J. Green revealed Tuesday that his visit to a foot specialist early in the week went well, noting he’s good to go for offseason training.

Meaning, this season with the Cincinnati Bengals is out.

But what about the long-term?

That’s up for a bevy of debate as Green remains scheduled to be a free agent this offseason. But one likely possibility is the Bengals slap the franchise tag on Green to keep him around on a prove-it sort of deal.

A new report says the Bengals plan on doing just that.

And Green says he wouldn’t like it — but he’d play.

“I have no problem with the franchise (tag). I don’t like it, but I’m not a guy that’s going to sit out the whole year,” Green said, according to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. “But at the end of the day, that shows me they’re not committed to me. That’s fine. They have a business they have to run. As the player I have my own business, so if you do that I have to protect myself.”

That seems like an increasingly likely scenario at this point. Green has simply missed too much time over the last few seasons for the Bengals front office to feel 100 percent confident in throwing him a big-money extension over a number of years.

A tag wouldn’t give Green the long-term security he seeks, but he isn’t guaranteed to find that on the market anyway given how his last few seasons have unfolded.

Green would make about $18 million on the franchise tag, which the Bengals would have to assign before the market opens next March. The two parties would then face a mid-July deadline to iron out a long-term pact.

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In a not-so-shocking turn, the Cincinnati Bengals will exercise the franchise tag on star wideout A.J. Green if it means keeping him from free agency this offseason.

So says a new report from Tyler Dragon of the Cincinnati Enquirer:

“If the two parties fail to reach an agreement before free agency opens in March, the Bengals are committed to franchise tagging the seven-time Pro Bowler to keep him off the open market, a high-level source told The Enquirer.”

Green had opened up with the media about his injury Tuesday before this report broke, that on the heels of his meeting with a foot specialist Monday.

In short, Green won’t play this year while still working his way back from the injury he suffered on the first day of training camp. It won’t impact his offseason workouts as he gets ready for next season, but troubles with range of motion will keep him off the field for the team’s final two games.

The scope of the situation always implied franchise tag, which Green has said he won’t hold out over. Green wants a long-term pact somewhere but the Bengals — and perhaps other teams — want to see more considering he’s missed a huge chunk of time over the past few seasons.

Think of a tag like a prove-it deal for the veteran who hasn’t been able to escape the injury bug lately. It would extend Green’s time in Cincinnati by at least one season while paying him about $18 million.

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