JUST IN:Bengals Contract Talks Are “Nonexistent,” Despite Franchise Tag Buzz, According to…
Long-term contract negotiations between the Cincinnati Bengals and Tee Higgins are reportedly “nonexistent” despite the wideout recently signing his franchise tag.
“Higgins, highly unlikely he gets a long-term deal. I was told that talks as of late are all but non-existent,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported Sunday on SportsCenter. “So, they talked before, made an offer and didn’t come to any sort of agreement. It’s been pretty quiet. And so, Higgins is in a situation now where he’s all but relenting that, ‘I’m going to play on a one-year deal with the Bengals and then I’m going to go kill it in free agency in 2025.’
He is not likely to be franchise tagged that next year because that would be a huge number and the Bengals are trying to budget for No. 1 Ja’Marr Chase, who some believe is the best receiver in the NFL next to Justin Jefferson. And so, they want to prioritize him; Burrow, Chase together long-term. It’s complicated though because Chase has two years left on his rookie contract and they don’t have to do it right now. The market is huge as we’re seeing $30-plus million for some of these receivers but the Bengals are going to try to shake this out and see what they can come to an agreement with. At least Higgins is in the fold, he’s signed. It was a bit of a surprise that he even signed this early. Some thought he would maybe wait until mid, late August, drag this out. But here he is, he’s in the fold.