Bengals contracts – Page 2 – Syndication Server

Bengals’ Tee Higgins wants future solved ‘very soon’

The clock is ticking for the Bengals with Tee Higgins.

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins is apparently unwilling to wait very long to figure out his NFL future.

According to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini on The Scoop City podcast, Higgins “wants to have an answer” for his contract status and NFL future “very soon.”

Meaning, Higgins wants to know quickly and not let things drag out into NFL free agency itself in March, if possible.

This isn’t all that shocking. One could reasonably suggest Higgins feels that he’s done his part already — he switched agents away from a guy the Bengals have never done an extension with. And reports have said he’s been in lockstep with Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase about staying in town long-term.

Adding to that, keep in mind that Higgins signed his franchise tag as early as possible last summer to avoid drama and didn’t hold out. A more recent report said his top goal isn’t necessarily to be a No. 1 wideout, either.

These things considered, it feels like all the Bengals have to do is throw Higgins and his new reps what they believe to be a fair contract and this saga could end well before free agency.

Based on how these things usually go, though, Higgins is likely to test the market and see what’s out there. The Bengals, meanwhile, have to juggle Chase’s extension and the inevitable Trey Hendrickson drama — all while trying to upgrade other spots on the roster, too.

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NFL insider warns Bengals-Trey Hendrickson situation could get ‘messy’

The Bengals will need to figure out the Trey Hendrickson situation quickly — and carefully.

The Cincinnati Bengals have three big names and contracts to figure out this offseason.

Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins dominate the spotlight, but a standoff with star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson has been brewing since last offseason.

Bengals director of player personnel Duke Tobin recently addressed the Hendrickson situation, but it hasn’t stopped some outside the organization from throwing out warnings.

One such name is NFL insider Ari Meirov, who warned viewers that Hendrickson isn’t going to play on the final year of his current contract.

“I’m just going to make this clear right now,” Meirov said, “If the Bengals don’t extend Trey Hendrickson, this situation has the potential to get really, really messy…he is not going to play on the final year of this contract.”

This one wasn’t hard to see coming, even if it does fall behind in the national spotlight compared to Chase and Higgins.

Hendrickson, after all, requested a trade last offseason due to feeling underpaid on his current contract. That eventually faded and he wound up leading the NFL with 17.5 sacks this season.

The Bengals will need to bump Hendrickson’s pay dramatically in order to avoid drama and the star defender seems to have all the leverage, considering the poor state of the defense around him.

Whether team and player agree on the number, though, is hard to say, as the Bengals don’t usually love throwing massive money at veterans who are at or over the age of 30.

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Joe Burrow uses Pro Bowl platform to put pressure on Bengals again

Joe Burrow was at it again…this time at the Pro Bowl.

Since the season seemed like a total loss, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow made a point to very publicly apply pressure to the team’s front office about contracts for teammates like Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Trey Hendrickson.

Burrow did it after games, mid-week during pressers, and at other times starting roughly in December and right on through to the end of the season.

Now he’s doing it at the Pro Bowl.

During ESPN’s broadcast after he competed in a skills competition, Burrow dropped the following: “I don’t know what more he could show and do to prove himself. We have several guys like that, who have stepped up for us, and deserve to be paid—deserve to be paid what they’re worth.”

Burrow was talking about Chase at first, of course, but it’s pretty obvious he was looping in Higgins and likely Hendrickson at the end there, too.

Rightfully, Burrow has been critical of the Bengals’ front office for past mistakes while letting big names such as Jessie Bates leave. Now, he’s gone public in a sort-of-subtle way with his warnings and/or pressure for the front office.

Bengals brass were at the Senior Bowl this week, too, and chatted about attempting to keep Burrow, Higgins and Chase together for the long-term, among other things.

Burrow, it seems, wanted to add another gentle reminder in front of a national audience.

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NFL execs cast doubt on Bengals keeping Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins

Some within the NFL don’t see the Bengals making this happen.

Near the end of the season, serious momentum seemed to suggest the Cincinnati Bengals would be able to keep Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins on long-term contracts.

Now, a little pushback to the idea has arrived, courtesy of anonymous NFL executives.

Those sources who spoke to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler are “skeptical” that the Bengals can make it happen because of the roster imbalances it would create.

“They will have close to $70 million a year tied up in receivers, plus the quarterback cost. I think it makes more sense to go the cheap route, especially given the improvements they need to make on defense,” an executive said.

What’s interesting is that these opinions are correct — throwing so much cash into the wideout depth chart would naturally come at a cost to other areas on the roster.

Still, there are ways around the problem. For one, big misses on Jermaine Burton and the erratic play of high picks like Cam Taylor-Britt mean there aren’t many others worth paying, anyway. The hope is that new defensive coordinator Al Golden can develop the young talent on defense, avoiding needing to pay up huge cash to fix the unit.

There are examples of other contenders making it work. We can reach far into the past and look at some of those Peyton Manning teams in Indianapolis or look to the present with Philadelphia.

It helps that Higgins changed to a team-friendlier agent and a recent report said Joe Burrow, Higgins and Chase have been plotting ways to stay together, too.

Until something happens, though, logical skepticism like this will keep making the rounds. It’s firmly on the Bengals front office to figure out how to navigate the tricky waters and they have roughly a month left on the timer.

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Fantasy football fans want to see Tee Higgins leave Bengals for…Pats?

The fantasy football side of things weighs in on Tee Higgins possibly leaving the Bengals.

The Cincinnati Bengals don’t seem like a team about to lose Tee Higgins to free agency this offseason.

Just don’t tell those on the fantasy football side of things.

Understandably, those in the fantasy football world would love to see Higgins escape the shadow of Ja’Marr Chase and become yet another WR1 available to them in fantasy football drafts.

That means suggesting Higgins leaving for the New England Patriots to play with Drake Maye could be a good thing, as Pro Football Focus’ Thomas Valentine just did:

From a fantasy lens, Higgins could feasibly vault into WR1 territory. His upside has always been a little hamstrung by playing alongside Ja’Marr Chase, but Higgins will be the de-facto No. 1 receiver in New England and would look to build a solid foundation with Maye, who has the chops to be one of the league’s better quarterbacks with some help. Higgins can be that help.

Luckily for Bengals fans (and unfortunately for fantasy footballers), all signs point to Higgins remaining in Cincinnati.

That is, provided the Bengals’ front office plays its cards right. Higgins changed agents, Joe Burrow keeps demanding it and a report said the Big 3 (Burrow, Higgins, Ja’Marr Chase) all have plans to stay together.

And after draft whiffs like Jermaine Burton, it sure seems likely to happen.

For Higgins, too, if the Bengals can get close and it’s a matter of Burrow vs. Maye, one has to think the choice is obvious and not rooted in fantasy football outlooks.

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Bengals’ contract extension with Ja’Marr Chase gets stunning $145M projection

A shocking price tag projection for the Bengals and Ja’Marr Chase.

The Cincinnati Bengals doing a big-money contract extension with Ja’Marr Chase seems an obvious event for the franchise this offseason.

Fresh off the team’s botching of it before last season, to the point reports said Chase felt misled, the star wideout went and won a triple crown, only upping his value.

Now, one of the most notable sets of projections from Spotrac has gone live with a four-year, $145 million estimate on the Chase extension.

Michael Ginnitti wrote the following:

127 catches, 1,708 yards, 17 touchdowns. There are certainly worse ways to launch yourself into a contract negotiation offseason, and Justin Jefferson’s $35M APY, $110M guaranteed could very much be in danger here. While drops remain a bit of a concern (9 in 2024), the former #5 overall pick has done more than enough to warrant a market resetting contract this spring.

Comments about drops aside, the projection is spot on, as Chase was always likely to shoot past Justin Jefferson and reset the bar for the entire position.

The Bengals will certainly have the cap space to get it done and project cleanly well into future years even after the fact, too.

Beyond that, with some tightrope walking, there really isn’t any reason to think the Bengals can’t get an extension done with Tee Higgins, too. That’s especially the case after Higgins changed agents and the Big 3 made their intentions to stick together clear.

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New report sheds light on Burrow, Chase and Higgins’ future with Bengals

An NFL insider just dropped a new report about the future of the Bengals.

If it wasn’t obvious already, Cincinnati Bengals stars Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins plan on staying together for the long haul.

This much has been obvious for a while now, what with Burrow putting public pressure on the front office about it, Higgins leaving his agent, then joining up with the same folks who rep Chase.

A report from NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport before the season finale in Pittsburgh just drives the point home: “Sources say the three have discussed playing together again for years to come. It’s their goal, and privately they have made no secret about it.”

All that remains?

The Bengals actually making it happen.

While it won’t be simple, the front office easily has the cap space to make it work (not even including a Burrow contract restructure, which could happen), provided those in charge can leave their comfort zones when it comes to guarantees and structure.

Given the state of the roster outside the Big 3, the Bengals don’t exactly have a ton of guys earning big extensions elsewhere right now, as is.

That Big 3 wants to stay together and frankly, there’s little reason to justify the Bengals not making it happen.

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NFL insider changes mind on Bengals keeping Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins

The idea of Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins Both getting Bengals extensions keeps getting more popular.

The perception of what will happen with the Cincinnati Bengals and star wideouts Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins has taken a dramatic shift in recent weeks.

It’s not just fans or even players who are interviewed, either.

Take, for example, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer. Asked about whether the Bengals can sign both Chase and Higgins, the expert admitted that he’s sensing a shift:

Kent, a month ago, I’d have said this was hard but easy. You don’t want to let either guy go, but there are financial realities that come with running a football team, and the choice between Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins is academic (good as Higgins is, Chase is different).

Now? After how Joe Burrow and his top two receivers have played over the past month, I’m moving to the do-whatever-it-takes-to-keep-both camp. The three are playing too well together not to at least take a swing at what could cost, between the three of them, around $120 million per year. Next year would be a number a little less than 45% of projections for next year’s cap (obviously, those numbers can be massaged).

Breer goes on to compare the situation to when the Indianapolis Colts paid up huge for Peyton Manning, Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne all at once, although this would be even more expensive for the Bengals.

But it’s not hard to see why the conversation has shifted on this topic. Joe Burrow just sent another message to the front office about it while also potentially slipping up and revealing that it’s in the works.

That, after Higgins left his agent and joined the same reps as Chase.

It all still has to come together in the offseason, in one way or another, but the idea of keeping all three together just keeps gaining steam.

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Tee Higgins’ contract situation with Bengals just got more interesting

Tee Higgins’ Week 17 showing and a new report paint his future with the Bengals in an interesting light.

By now, it feels like Tee Higgins simply won’t be leaving the Cincinnati Bengals.

Much has gone into this dramatic shift in Higgins’ future outlook with the Bengals over the last few weeks. His dramatic role in the season-saving win over the Denver Broncos in Week 17, highlighted by 11 catches for 131 yards and three scores and the game-winning catch in overtime, only intensified this idea.

A report after the game helped just as much, though.

Said report comes from a note shared by CBS Sports’ Aditi Kinkhabwala on social media:

Tee Higgins told me last week being paid as a WR1 is not necessarily his no. 1 motivator. Said, “I’m playing with if not the best, one of the best, QBs. I’m playing with if not the best, one of the best, WRs. That opens up things for me.” And: “In this offense, everyone has a chance to be spotlighted.” He now shares an agent with Ja’Marr Chase and Chase told us Higgins is “the most unselfish person.” Maybe it’s not impossible…

This has been a read-between-the-lines thing for a few weeks now.

After all, Joe Burrow shocked some by putting serious public pressure on the Bengals front office to get an extension done. Shortly after, Higgins split with his (notorious in Cincinnati) agent. Then, he signed with the same reps as Ja’Marr Chase.

Tack on an all-timer of a showing in Bengals franchise history in Week 17, and this report, and it certainly feels like the team won’t have a choice but to find a way to keep the dynamic trio together.

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Tee Higgins breaks silence on contract extension status with Bengals

Tee Higgins just appeared in a new interview and talked about his contract status with the Bengals.

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins “would love” to stay with the team on a long-term extension.

So says the star wideout himself in a new interview with TMZ Sports ahead of his team’s Week 16 game against the Cleveland Browns.

There, Higgins confirmed he wants to be with the Bengals, although he added a”this business is crazy” for good measure.

This stance isn’t all that new for Higgins, as he’s remained adamant about the situation for the better part of a year, at least.

But this comment comes at an interesting time. Joe Burrow just put very public pressure on the Bengals front office to get a Higgins extension done. Ja’Marr Chase then did the same.

Right after that, Higgins split from agent David Mulugheta — and just so happened to hire the same reps as Chase.

The writing very much appears to be on the wall about what Higgins wants. While the Bengals getting Chase and Higgins extended together will be tricky, the team has the cap room and all three clearly want it. Plus, funnily enough, it helps that the team’s poor drafting means they don’t have to pay up big elsewhere on the roster right now.

If the Bengals get serious with the proper cash, contract structure, and guarantees, Higgins won’t hit the free-agent market.

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