Bengals Tag Higgins Again, Remain Far Apart on Deals with Star WRs
The Cincinnati Bengals have officially used their franchise tag on wide receiver Tee Higgins for the second straight year, Higgins announced on social media on Monday. The move had been expected for several weeks if the Bengals and Higgins couldn’t work out a long-term deal. The deadline to apply the franchise tag is Tuesday.
The Bengals will now owe Higgins a fully guaranteed $26.2 million for the 2025 season, though it is unexpected that Higgins will play under that deal. He is seeking a new long-term contract extension with the Bengals.
Cincinnati will now have until July 15 to either sign Higgins to a contract extension or trade him to another team that will sign him to a contract extension. If Higgins remains tagged but unsigned by the Bengals after July 15, he will either have to play under the tag this season, or be forced to sit out like running back Le’Veon Bell did with the Steelers in 2018.
Bengals general manager Duke Tobin said at the NFL Combine last week that he plans to find a way for Cincinnati to keep all three of their star players in precarious contract situations. Higgins has been tagged, fellow wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase is scheduled to play under the fifth-year option and final year of his rookie contract in 2025, while star defensive end Trey Hendrickson is approaching the last year of his free agent contract.
“I’m going to do what I can to get Tee Higgins,” Tobin said. “Our preference with Tee Higgins is to do a long-term agreement. Always has been, it continues to be, and we’ll work hard to get that done. … We’re fortunate to be in a position to be where we can fit them all in. We’ve managed our cap well. We have low dead money.”
The Bengals and Chase remain far apart in contract talks, according to a report by Diana Russini of The Athletic on Monday. Chase is reportedly seeking $40 million per year on his contract extension. It’s not clear how far apart the Bengals and Higgins are in getting a deal done. The Bengals have $43.3 million in offseason salary cap space, according to Over the Cap.
The Pittsburgh Steelers would likely have been a major player for Higgins if the Bengals allowed him to hit the free agent market, but it’s nearly impossible to imagine that even if Tobin is unable to work out a long-term deal with Higgins, that he would trade him to an AFC North rival.