Tee Higgins, Cincinnati Bengals’ standout wide receiver, demanded a trade from the team two weeks ago. Losing Higgins would be a huge blow to the squad and its star quarterback, Joe Burrow; yet, the team is not disregarding his request. ESPN’s Jeremey Fowler reported that the Bengals are open to trade proposals for Higgins.
He wanted out, so he made the trade request. I spoke with a couple interested teams, and they feel the Bengals are willing to listen. That’s a touch softer than they could have been a year ago, when they were absolutely not trading him. So teams will try to coax him out. New England has been looking for receiving help, and they may try to trade a Day 2 pick for Higgins.”
Fowler mentioned the New England Patriots, a former AFC powerhouse, as one of the teams interested in obtaining Higgins. The Patriots could need all of the assistance they can get. If the Bengals could receive what they need and then some from the Patriots, we might see.
Cincinnati assigned a franchise tag to Higgins on February 26th, more than a week before the March 5 deadline. The franchise tag was applied in the hopes of getting ahead of the game and negotiating a long-term contract, or so we thought. Zac Taylor, the Bengals’ head coach, told reporters at the NFL Combine nothing of the sort.
We don’t want one of the league’s best receivers to walk out of the building. So I believe it is vital to put a tag on him, keep him in the building, and allow him to play for us for at least another season.
Higgins wanted a move because he was disillusioned with the franchise. ESPN’s Adam Schefter stated that the organisation and Higgins have not discussed a long-term contract since March 2023. It’s been a long time coming, as Higgins has consistently produced for Cincinnati.
