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Star wide receiver Tee Higgins was projected to be one of the biggest names on the free agent market this offseason, but the Cincinnati Bengals are going to make a concerted effort to make sure he stays into the orange and black for the foreseeable future.
In order to prevent Higgins from hitting the open market, the Bengals are planning on using the non-exclusive franchise tag on him before the Feb. 18 deadline, according to James Rapien of Sports Illustrated. Last season, Higgins was also tagged and played under the one-year deal in 2024. This season, however, the Bengals have different reasons for tagging the Clemson product.
“Last year the Bengals tagged Higgins and there wasn’t much dialogue about a long-term contract. He was the only player that was tagged by his team last year that didn’t sign a multi-year extension,” Rapien wrote. “This year feels different. The Bengals plan to sign the star receiver to a long-term deal, sources say.”
Higgins has been a crucial part of this Bengals offense during his time there and has developed into one of the best outside ball-winners in football. During the 2024 season and now into the offseason, quarterback Joe Burrow has been very vocal about the need to bring Higgins back in order to help this Bengals team get back to the playoffs.
Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase form arguably the best duo on the outside in the entire NFL, and having them both on the field makes Cincinnati an absolute headache for opposing secondaries to prepare and play against. Higgins had an injury-riddled season last year, but he still showed his worth in a dominant performance in a must-win game against the Denver Broncos. On that Saturday afternoon, Higgins posted 11 catches for 131 yards and three touchdowns against one of the best defenses in the league.
Burrow will certainly be thrilled with the news that Higgins and the Bengals are working on an extension and that they seem to be closer to an agreement than they were at this time last season. Cincinnati has missed the playoffs in two consecutive seasons due to injuries on offense and roster decline on defense, but running back the trio of Burrow, Chase and Higgins always seemed like the most logical way to get this team playing in late January again.
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