Predicting when the Bengals will place the franchise tag on Tee Higgins and potentially reach a long-term contract
Today opens the two-week window for NFL teams to utilize the franchise tag on any impending free agent currently on a roster. There's a good chance that 31 of the 32 franchises will not exercise the tag on any of their players. The Cincinnati Bengals happen to be the one exception.Cincinnati is expected to use […]
Today opens the two-week window for NFL teams to utilize the franchise tag on any impending free agent currently on a roster. There's a good chance that 31 of the 32 franchises will not exercise the tag on any of their players. The Cincinnati Bengals happen to be the one exception.
Cincinnati is expected to use the franchise tag on wide receiver Tee Higgins for the second consecutive year, as first reported by BengalsTalk.com's James Rapien. The Bengals' reasoning for using the tag would be to ensure a long-term contract with Higgins can be reached, preventing him from seeing the open market of free agency.
This leads us to one question: If the plan to tag and then extend Higgins exists, when will the plan be fulfilled?
Rapien's reporting states that Higgins' camp "expects to get tagged" prior to when the two-week window closes on March 4. The Bengals could pull the trigger early on in the window this week to get it over with, or they could use this time to negotiate while having the option to use the tag at the last minute.
Multiple reports indicate the latter might be Cincinnati's plan.
NFL Media's Tom Pelissero corroborated Rapien's reporting Monday that signing Higgins long-term is on the docket for the Bengals, and the tag would be used if no deal could be reached in time as a failsafe.
"The Bengals are focused on getting a long-term deal done with wide receiver Tee Higgins and hope a franchise tag won't be needed, NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero reported Monday. Pelissero added that if the parties can't come to an agreement before the March 4 deadline, the Bengals are considered likely to tag Higgins for a second straight year, which would cost $26.2 million (120% of last season's salary)." – NFL Media's Bobby Kownack
ESPN's Jeremy Fowler wrote a very similar report, emphasizing that the tag will be a vehicle to reach a deal if it hasn't already happened.
"One team source says they believe the Bengals will use the franchise tag on Higgins if no long-term deal is reached by the March 4 tag deadline 'in order to have time to get a deal done. Can't let him walk.'" – ESPN's Jeremy Fowler
When combining all of this reporting, we can deduce that the Bengals will be using the next two weeks to hammer home a contract for Higgins, but the tag is the most likely outcome by the time the window closes. There's still a real chance the tag gets placed on him sooner rather than later to just get it out of the way, but the smoke is coming from the other side of the spectrum.
This may not seem like great news for Higgins, but it is a typical part of the process.
Last year, after Higgins was the first of eight players around the league to be tagged, six of the other seven eventually signed long-term contracts within the next few weeks. The last of the group, Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Antoine Winfield Jr., didn't get his bag until the middle of May.
| 2024 Franchise Player | Date of Long-Term Contract/Trade Agreement |
|---|---|
Josh Hines-Allen (Jacksonville Jaguars) | April 10, 2024 |
Brian Burns (Carolina Panthers, traded to New York Giants | March 11, 2024 |
Tee Higgins | None |
Jaylon Johnson (Chicago Bears) | March 7, 2024 |
Nnamdi Madubuike (Baltimore Ravens | March 8, 2024 |
Michael Pittman (Indianapolis Colts) | March 11, 2024 |
L’Jarius Snead (Kansas City Chiefs, traded to Tennessee Titans) | March 22, 2024 |
Antoine Winfield Jr. (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) | May 13, 2024 |
Again, the Bengals are of the belief that a long-term deal for Higgins can be reached. There is no reported interest of the team trading him, and the club has never had anyone play on the tag two years in a row. All signs point to ensuring Higgins doesn't end up as an outlier again like he was last year.
PREDICTION
The best guess is for the Bengals to work around the March 4 deadline. I predict Higgins will receive the tag on that date, extending the window for both sides to exclusively negotiate with one another.
Six days later is when free agency unofficially opens with the beginning of the legal tampering period. If an extension with Higgins is reached, I predict it'll be reported between March 9 and March 12.
Tee Higgins’ future with the Bengals may revolve around a few important dates within the next month on the NFL calendar
Cincinnati can exclusively negotiate with Higgins for a few more weeks.
