The Cincinnati Bengals have plenty of contract issues to work through this offseason.
They have franchised tagged wide receiver Tee Higgins for the second year in a row as
they have not come to an agreement on a long-term contract. This was announced by
Higgins through a tweet by simply posting “tag”. Last month he also tweeted that he
would be the first to let people know about his status with the Bengals.
Photo Cred: USA Today
Higgins would receive $26.2 million if they do not come to an agreement on an extension by July 15th. Higgins is not the only big-name player with contract issues as the Bengals still have wide receiver Jamar Chase and defensive end Trey Hendrickson who are only under contract for one more season. Three players who are wanting to be paid and have job security for the foreseeable future.
Quarterback Joe Burrow has been vocal about wanting the team to pay these guys to keep the team together. He has also said that he is willing to restructure his 5-year $275
million dollar contract to free up money for the Bengals to spend on other players. When
he signed the contract $219 million of it was guaranteed. The Bengals could move
money around in his contract by pushing it back to later in his contract.
Changing some of the money owed to Burrow into a signing bonus, or Burrow could just take less money in general. This core of Burrow, Chase, Higgins, and Hendricks led this team to the Super Bowl in 2021 until ultimately falling to the Los Angeles Rams. They lost in the AFC Championship in 2022 but have gone on to miss the playoffs the last two seasons because of injuries and inconsistent defensive play.
Photo Cred: USA Today
Despite starting their 2024 campaign 4-8 they went on to finish the year 9-8 and just
missing the playoffs. They competed with some of the league’s best teams as well by
losing to the Chiefs 26-25, Commanders 38-33, and losing to division rival Baltimore
twice by a combined four points. Bengals fans feel they have a team that can win, but
that is done by keeping these core players together for the foreseeable future.
