CINCINNATI, OH - DECEMBER 16: Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins (5) walks off the field with wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase (1) during the game against the Minnesota Vikings and the Cincinnati Bengals on December 16, 2023, at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati, OH. (Photo by Ian Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Cincinnati Bengals Exec Refuses to Rule Out Potential Tee Higgins Trade Despite Franchise Tag
Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins was the first player in the offseason to get franchise-tagged. At the onset, you would think that this was a clear indication from the Bengals in terms of how much they value the 25-year-old and how they’d like to keep him on the team for at least another season.
As it turns out, however, Cincinnati may have other plans in place
Cincinnati Bengals Open to Tee Higgins Trade?
The only guarantee that was brought about by the team’s decision to use the franchise tag on Higgins is that he won’t be an unrestricted free agent this summer. However, it does seem that the Bengals are still open to the possibility of trading away the former Clemson standout if the right opportunity comes.
For his part, Bengals director of player personnel Duke Tobin isn’t ruling out the possibility of parting ways with Higgins this summer:
“The message is: We really like Tee, and we’re a better team with Tee,” Tobin said, via Charean Williams of PFT. “In terms of our intentions going forward, and answering hypotheticals of what could and couldn’t come about, I won’t get into that. But we feel like we’re a better team with him. The reason we franchised him is because we would like to have him. He’s not under contract, and it’s hard for me to predict all the different scenarios that could happen. But we feel strongly about Tee Higgins and his fit with us.”
At the end of the day, money talks. As Tobin said, the Bengals would love to keep Higgins for the long haul, but at the same time, the question looms if they could actually afford him considering how franchise wideout Ja’Marr Chase is looking to sign a big-money extension this summer.
