The Cincinnati Bengals are planning on using the franchise tag on star wideout, Tee Higgins, for a second-straight season. The tag window ends on March 4th and teams can start using their franchise tags starting today (February 18th, 2025). The Bengals are desperate to retain weapons for quarterback, Joe Burrow. Higgins would arguably be the top wide receiver in free agency. However, he will be unavailable if he is tagged as the Bengals do have plans to sign him to a long-term deal eventually. Under the tag, Higgins would make $26.18 million in one year. Still, the star wide receiver has longed for a new contract for a long time now, but there is more traction to this than there was last season. As alluded to already, Cincinnati knows the importance of keeping as many stars as they can going into next year.
Cincinnati Bengals Plan to Use Franchise Tag on Tee Higgins for Second Year in a Row
Tee Higgins’ Numbers From Last Year
Last season, Higgins was hindered by nagging injuries. Still, the former Clemson product produced a campaign close to 1,000 yards receiving. 911 receiving yards in 12 games played to be exact. As if that was not impressive enough, Higgins also logged a career-best 10 receiving touchdowns to go along with 6.1 receptions per game (another career-best). He also recorded a receiving success rate of 64.2 percent, a catch percentage of 67.0 percent, and 12.5 receiving yards per reception. All in all, Tee Higgins showed why he is so valuable to the Cincinnati Bengals this past season. He is also arguably Burrow’s favorite target, especially since Ja’Marr Chase tends to draw double-teams at times. Key word, “arguably.” The one-two punch of he and superstar wide receiver, Ja’Marr Chase, is crucial to the offensive success of the Cincinnati Bengals. Especially for star quarterback, Joe Burrow.
A Busy Offseason Ahead for the Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals have a lot of tough decisions ahead this offseason. Not only do they have to decide about the underappreciated Tee Higgins, but star pass-rusher, Trey Hendrickson, will also need a new contract. Especially since Hendrickson is massively underpaid compared to other elite NFL edge-rushers and is entering the final year of his current deal. Moreover, Ja’Marr Chase will command a massive contract that will rival his peers of Justin Jefferson and Tyreek Hill. With all of this in mind, the Cincinnati Bengals will be in the headlines quite a bit going forward.
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