For the last couple of years, the Cincinnati Bengals have flirted with every possible scenario involving Tee Higgins' future with the team. As it turns out, for all the rumors and trade ideas, Higgins might be staying in Cincy long term after all.
NFL sources have told Sports Illustrated's James Rapien that the team plans on using the franchise tag on Higgins this offseason with the intention of coming to terms on a new contract extension. This further confirms the rumors from a week prior that the outlook was positive on both sides to further his stay with the Bengals.
As Higgins approached the end of his rookie deal, the Bengals never seemed sure what to do with Higgins given the increasingly expensive wide receiver market. The team was already preparing to pay through the nose for Ja'Marr Chase—as they should—which could amount to $90 million guaranteed over four years, with a potential of reaching $145M.
No team wants to rack up those kinds of cap hits at a single position, but the Bengals have two elite talents that carry their offense and quarterback Joe Burrow is wise to fight for the team to retain both and figure out the rest later.
If the rumors prove true, this will also mean significant things for this year's wide receiver class. While no player is perfect, Higgins was by far the most talented wideout to potentially hit the market, which means needy teams are going to have to accept greater risks—whether that's injury concerns, production drops, or advancing ages.
How Higgins impacts Chiefs receivers
For two members of the Kansas City Chiefs hitting free agency, this news is a big win. That's because they stand near the top of the food chain among free agents to be and should benefit from a bit less competition from teams searching for veteran wide receivers.
While Stefon Diggs, Chris Godwin, Amari Cooper, and Keenan Allen are also hoping for another payday, some of those players are in the same tier of risk/reward as Marquise Brown and DeAndre Hopkins. The former has injury concerns, but so do Godwin and Allen. Hopkins is long in the tooth, but Diggs will be 32 and Cooper and Allen are also 30 or older as well.
Beyond that, the cupboards start to look barren. Darius Slayton's history of production can't touch some of the others and Diontae Johnson had the worst contract year in recent memory. Maybe Mike Williams can convince someone to roll the dice,
Basically, Brown and Hopkins should both have no problem getting some team to bite on the production they would bring to the offense—the Chiefs seem a good fit for a potential re-signing for Brown in particular. Undoubtedly both will benefit from having Higgins off the market and so many other teams waiting to use their cap space.
Brown was out for almost the entire season last year, but he returned healthy enough to contribute to a postseason run for the Chiefs and is a reliable offensive presence when available. Of course, that's also his biggest concern, so a one-year deal is likely in his future once again. As for Hopkins, his usage was a bit lower than expected late in the year, so some questions can be asked there, but he's proven to be able to handle volume targets with excellent hands not so long ago.