ClutchPoints
Though the 2024 NFL season is still technically alive and well, with the 2025 NFL Playoffs set to cap off in New Orleans with a rematch between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs, many a talent evaluator is already looking forward to the 2025 season, with free agency opening up in March just over a month before the 2025 NFL Draft.
Soon, fans will see which teams can keep their current players, which players end up moving on the open market, and how the corresponding moves impact the future, not to mention how teams will tackle the 2025 NFL Draft as a result.
But who is the best player on the open market? Is there one free agent who rises above the rest and will be in the highest demand when the market opens up? Well, in the opinion of NFL safety-turned-ESPN analyst Matt Bowen, there is, and it’s not one of the big-name quarterbacks like Russell Wilson or Sam Darnold or an elite offensive lineman like Ronnie Stanley or Trey Smith. No, that honor instead goes to the Bengals’ WR2 Tee Higgins, who is about to get paid like one by Cincinnati or the numerous teams who will line up to secure his services.
“Higgins is just entering his prime playing years and is our top free agent for the 2025 class. At 6-foot-4 and 219 pounds, he can win on the boundary or create matchups from inside alignments,” Bowen wrote for ESPN. “And despite playing alongside Ja’Marr Chase in Cincinnati, Higgins is the closest thing to a No. 1 receiver in this year’s group. Injuries limited him to 12 games in 2024, yet he still finished with 73 receptions for 911 yards. His 10 touchdown catches tied for sixth most in the league.”
Alright, is Bowen’s rationale on the money? Do you know what? Yes, it probably is, as while quarterback is the most important position in the NFL, and there are All-Pro players like Zack Baun who could move to another team in free agency, it seems like about a dozen teams across the NFL are clamoring to get Higgins under contract with their favorite team, as players with his unique athletic profile don’t grow on trees.
ESPN national reporter Jeremy Fowler weighed in on Higgins’ free agency value, too, with the veteran media member noting that an AFC executive he spoke with believes it’s unlikely he will return to Cincinnati this fall unless it’s on another team.
Some executives are skeptical that Cincinnati can pay both Higgins and Chase. “It’s possible, but would require some significant trade-offs,” an AFC exec said. “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.”
Would the Bengals really risk other positions of need by paying $70 million to two wide receivers, especially after having a truly brutal defensive...
