The Cincinnati Bengals announced on March 3rd that they were using their franchise tag on fifth-year wide receiver Tee Higgins. The Bengals said that they are using the franchise tag option with the intent “of continuing to work toward a long-term deal in Cincinnati.”
tag.
— Tee Higgins⁵ (@teehiggins5) March 3, 2025
Higgins and the Bengals now have until 4:00 p.m. ET on July 15th to hammer out a long-term contract extension, otherwise, he will play the 2025-26 season under the franchise tag. If Higgins signs the franchise tender and plays for Cincinnati next year, he is scheduled to make $26.2 million.
Entering his sixth season, Higgins has caught 330 regular-season passes for the Bengals for 4,595 receiving yards and 34 touchdowns. Despite missing some time last season due to injury, he still finished the year with a career-high ten touchdown catches.
Higgins isn’t going anywhere
At first, I was somewhat skeptical about the prospect of the Bengals signing Higgins to a long-term contract because (in all likelihood) he’ll warrant $30 million per year. Now, when the Bengals say they want to work out a long-term deal with Higgins, I actually believe them.
I guess this shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. Cincy has said multiple times that it wants to re-sign Higgins as well as wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase and defensive end Trey Hendrickson. I just didn’t think they had the cap space to do it. But after they released defensive lineman Sheldon Rankins and guard Alex Cappa, that dream is beginning to look more like a reality.
We have designated WR Tee Higgins as our franchise player.
📰: https://t.co/1cV2nhFOBm pic.twitter.com/jij8VBPpof
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) March 3, 2025
The Bengals have been saying for two years that they want to sign Higgins to a long-term deal. Now, they (literally) have to put their money where their mouth is. If they are not able to reach a long-term contract extension with Higgins before the July 15th deadline, I guarantee he’ll leave next off-season. Tagging Higgins for a second straight year has backed the Bengals into a corner.
I still believe that Cincy will nail down a long-term contract extension with Higgins. However, it will happen because the Benglas HAVE to do it, not because they want to do it. Especially after quarterback Joe Burrow said that he wants the franchise to start spending money and retaining players the same way the Philadelphia Eagles do.
The 2025 free-agent market continues to shrink
Over the last five days, four of the best players who were expected to be available this off-season were taken off the board. And it’s not just that these four guys were really good players; each person taken off the market was the best or second-best individual at their respective position in the 2025 free-agent class.
It started on Friday when the Chiefs announced they were placing their franchise tag on guard Trey Smith, taking the best available offensive lineman off the market. Over the weekend, the best quarterback was removed from the potential free agent/trade pool when the Rams restructured their deal with Matthew Stafford. Additionally, the second-best offensive tackle was taken off the board when LA reportedly signed Alaric Jackson to a three-year extension. Now, the best wide receiver in this free-agency class is no longer available.
The NFL’s legal tampering period AKA free agency is one week away.
Chaos… 🔜
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) March 3, 2025
Don’t get me wrong. There are still plenty of incredibly talented players who will be available to sign wherever they want when the new league year begins on March 12th. Even though Higgins is off the board, Tampa Bay Buccaneers wideout Chris Godwin is expected to test free agency after it was reported that the Bucs would not be using their franchise tag on him. The same goes for Sam Darnold and the Minnesota Vikings.
Unfortunately for teams in the hunt for a quarterback, Sam Darnold is a massive downgrade from Matthew Stafford. And while Godwin is just as good as Higgins, he is coming off of an ankle dislocation, so buyers might be wary of giving him a long-term deal.
It seems that each day before the new league year begins, the 2025 free-agent class gets weaker and weaker.
