The Cincinnati Bengals are going to have some difficult decisions to make this offseason.
After failing to strike an accord with playmaking wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase this offseason, Chase’s electrifying first half of the 2024 campaign sets him up to potentially become the highest-paid player at his position across the league this upcoming offseason.
And, while Chase has already caught 66 passes for 981 yards with 10 touchdowns so far this season, he isn’t the only receiver the Bengals are going to need to make a final decision on in a few months.
NFL Agent Reveals Tee Higgins’ Cincinnati Bengals Future
Playing opposite Chase, Tee Higgins rounds out one of the most prolific wide receiver duos in the sport, and has been a focal point of quarterback Joe Burrow‘s target hierarchy throughout his career in Cincinnati.
However, Higgins is also playing out the final year of his deal, and one prominent agent familiar with the wide receiver market suggests this will be his Cincinnati swan-song.
“I don’t think the Bengals can afford to pay Tee and Chase,” the agent tells me, on the condition of anonymity to speak freely. “Chase is WR 1, there’s no question about that and he has to be paid first.
“The Bengals can tag Tee again next year, I’m not sure Tee is a WR1 on any team other than Cincinnati where he’d be the No. 2. If he stays in Cincinnati, you’re talking about a $20-25 million per season guy. If he hits the open market, I think he can command much more as a free agent.”
Higgins this season has caught 29 passes for 341 yards and three touchdowns, and could see a robust market when free agency gets underway next spring.
Cincinnati is projected to have upwards of $66.38 million in cap space in 2025, but, the agent I spoke to agrees with the notion that Chase will likely come in as the highest-paid wide receiver in the sport. The expectation is Chase’s new deal will surpass Justin Jefferson’s $35 million APY, “if only by one dollar.”
That could make it exceedingly difficult for the Bengals to keep their prolific wide receiver duo together, but Higgins could be primed to cash in elsewhere.
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