Joe Burrow's bold statement about Bengals WR Tee Higgins looks a lot more promising based on latest report
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow made headlines Monday night expressing confidence that the franchise would be able to retain wide receiver Tee Higgins this upcoming offseason."I'm confident that I think we're gonna be able to do what it takes to bring Tee back," Burrow told reporters after defeating the Dallas Cowboys. "And I know that […]
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow made headlines Monday night expressing confidence that the franchise would be able to retain wide receiver Tee Higgins this upcoming offseason.
"I'm confident that I think we're gonna be able to do what it takes to bring Tee back," Burrow told reporters after defeating the Dallas Cowboys. "And I know that I'm gonna do what it takes to get him back, and so is he. We've had those talks. Those are gonna be offseason discussions, but I think we're excited about that opportunity."
Higgins' representation and the Bengals have not been on the same page for quite some time now. Negotiations for an extension broke down before the 2023 season, and the club immediately placed the franchise tag on him back in February.
But if Higgins changes representation, the tide could shift back towards the Bengals' favor. That now could be a possibility.
ESPN's Dan Graziano reports of "rumblings" that Higgins may be looking for a new agent to replace David Mulugheta of Athletes First. The 25-year old receiver is no longer listed with Mulugheta according to the NFL Players Association. Graziano says this could be adding validity towards what Burrow said this week.
"There are rumblings that Higgins is pondering an agent change (he's no longer listed with his previous agent on the official NFLPA site, but he's also not yet listed with a new one), which sometimes indicates a change in the player's negotiating stance. And Burrow's confidence shouldn't be ignored completely, as he's not the type to just say things like that off the cuff. I don't know how this shakes out. I still think it makes more sense for the Bengals to pay [Ja'Marr] Chase, even if that means letting Higgins walk. But the longer it goes without a new deal for Chase, the more expensive the price tag gets."
Cincinnati's relationship with Mulugheta has not been a productive one. Mulugheta represented Jessie Bates III when the Bengals failed to extend his contract back in 2021. Like Higgins, Bates was tagged a year later 2022. He left for the Atlanta Falcons in free agency the following year.
The holdup with Bates' deal was the guaranteed money, and Higgins' deal hit the same roadblock. Bates stuck with his agency and got the contract that he wanted from Atlanta.
There's nothing official regarding Higgins changing agents, but if Higgins were to make a switch, that could be a sign that he is willing to do what it takes to stay in Cincinnati. Negotiations could restart and lead to a needed common ground between both parties.
Figuring out a way to keep both Higgins and Ja'Marr Chase has proven complicated for the Bengals. Not even the latter, who's on pace to win the receiver triple crown this season, was able to get an extension done before his fourth season began. Cincinnati will put forth a monumental effort towards locking in Chase this upcoming offseason, and the easiest way to do that is to move on from Higgins unless they're able to sign Higgins to a deal they'd accept.
That's not going to happen with Mulugheta in the picture, but it could with a different agent.
If the Bengals manage to retain both Chase and Higgins, that would make everyone in Cincinnati quite pleased. Perhaps Burrow was hinting at something real.
Zac Taylor hopes new plan for Bengals WR Tee Higgins will prevent a persistent problem from happening again
Injuries have plagued what looks to be Tee Higgins' final year as a wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals. The fifth-year wideout has only played in six of Cincinnati's 11 contests this season thanks to two separate injuries. To make matters worse, both injuries occurred in practice leading up to games. Like the great Allen […]
