Report: Expectations are Bengals use franchise tag on Tee Higgins

[sparky151]

Bengals can easily afford to extend Higgins as well as Chase if they wish to. Burrow's cap number jumps in 2025 but then only rises slowly after that. If we end up paying Burrow+Chase+Higgins an average of $110 mil per year, that's not prohibitive. Chiefs had something similar this past season with Mahomes+Jones+Kelce. They had a bunch of guys on rookie contracts who were contributors. 

 

We should want our drafted players to be successful and keep them when they are plus players, not recycle through them. There's also finding value in veteran free agency. Not everyone is top of the market, there are guys just looking for a roster spot and some of them are useful players. Tranquill and Edwards would be examples for the Chiefs while Apple and Flowers were for us in 2021.

[Jamie_B]

1 minute ago, sparky151 said:

Bengals can easily afford to extend Higgins as well as Chase if they wish to. Burrow's cap number jumps in 2025 but then only rises slowly after that. If we end up paying Burrow+Chase+Higgins an average of $55 mil per year, that's not prohibitive. Chiefs had something similar this past season with Mahomes+Jones+Kelce. They had a bunch of guys on rookie contracts who were contributors. 

 

We should want our drafted players to be successful and keep them when they are plus players, not recycle through them. There's also finding value in veteran free agency. Not everyone is top of the market, there are guys just looking for a roster spot and some of them are useful players. Tranquill and Edwards would be examples for the Chiefs while Apple and Flowers were for us in 2021.

 

 

THIS. 

 

This is exactly what I am saying we have to get better at.

[Le Tigre]

You know Jamie, you have convinced me. All draft, all the time. Pitch every proven player for roll-of-dice college players. Or recycled bridge FA’s. I’m not kidding either. 
 

Why? Because each year is its own universe. Don’t concern yourself with ‘25, when ‘24 will have enough challenges. And ‘26 is another dimension altogether. 
 

If this team could make a Super Bowl with a few FA purchases, developing draftees (including Saints Tee and Uno), and a Volkssturm right side of the offensive line, they can do it with this bunch. Maybe. 
 

 

 

[sparky151]

I should have said a combined $110 mil rather than 55 but the point remains.

 

KC got extra draft picks by trading Hill. Are you suggesting we do the same with Uno?

 

I'm in favor of your idea of running the ball better, with the QB under center more. I'm also in favor of replacing Pollack with a new O-line coach though it's likely too late for that now. When Bill Callahan left the Browns to work with his son, I think the assistant there left Cleveland too. We should have hired him. Maybe Rascati can help our O-line this year. We have plenty of resources this offseason to add talent so there's no reason we can't aim for a Super Bowl win in 2024.

[Jamie_B]

4 minutes ago, Le Tigre said:

You know Jamie, you have convinced me. All draft, all the time. Pitch every proven player for roll-of-dice college players. Or recycled bridge FA’s. I’m not kidding either. 
 

Why? Because each year is its own universe. Don’t concern yourself with ‘25, when ‘24 will have enough challenges. And ‘26 is another dimension altogether. 
 

If this team could make a Super Bowl with a few FA purchases, developing draftees (including Saints Tee and Uno), and a Volkssturm right side of the offensive line, they can do it with this bunch. Maybe. 
 

 

Let me know when you want to put your adult pants back on and talk about this rationally.

[Jamie_B]

7 minutes ago, sparky151 said:

I should have said a combined $110 mil rather than 55 but the point remains.

 

KC got extra draft picks by trading Hill. Are you suggesting we do the same with Uno?

 

I'm in favor of your idea of running the ball better, with the QB under center more. I'm also in favor of replacing Pollack with a new O-line coach though it's likely too late for that now. When Bill Callahan left the Browns to work with his son, I think the assistant there left Cleveland too. We should have hired him. Maybe Rascati can help our O-line this year. We have plenty of resources this offseason to add talent so there's no reason we can't aim for a Super Bowl win in 2024.

 

Hell no. I want to keep Jamar long term and either keep Tee for this year only or trade him. Or if we do keep him long term maybe get better at scouting by expanding the scouting department so that we can have great players at other spots too.

 

Yes we completely agree that we need to do better than what Pollack has given us. Maybe Rascati can help, but if not I hope they consider finding a better Oline coach or guys who scout the Oline better, because that is the one thing holding us back on the O side of the ball.

[Jamie_B]

Let me put this this way Sport Trac two guys who I think are likely going to be tagged this year, Tee already being tagged, and Justin Madubuke likely getting it.

 

What they think their market value is

 

Tee

• 4 yrs, $74,405,184
• Avg. Salary: $18,601,296

Justin

• 4 yrs, $81,287,936
• Avg. Salary: $20,321,984

 

If I had to choose I would take a All Pro DT over a WR2 that plays like WR1, when you already have WR1 that is a top 5 WR, and I don't think that is a hard choice to make. And I love Tee

 

The money for both of those guys is close enough that I think it's a good comparison. 

[claptonrocks]

4 minutes ago, Jamie_B said:

Let me put this this way Sport Trac two guys who I think are likely going to be tagged this year, Tee already being tagged, and Justin Madubuke likely getting it.

 

What they think their market value is

 

Tee

• 4 yrs, $74,405,184
• Avg. Salary: $18,601,296

Justin

• 4 yrs, $81,287,936
• Avg. Salary: $20,321,984

 

If I had to choose I would take a All Pro DT over a WR2 that plays like WR1, when you already have WR1 that is a top 5 WR, and I don't think that is a hard choice to make. And I love Tee

 

The money for both of those guys is close enough that I think it's a good comparison. 

Regardless of what Sport Trac is assuming Tees agent is the same as Jesse Bates.

Hard core dude looking for a huge numbers. 4yr 90 mil or so.

Could e a factor

 

 

[Jamie_B]

1 minute ago, claptonrocks said:

Regardless of what Sport Trac is assuming Tees agent is the same as Jesse Bates.

Hard core dude looking for a huge numbers. 4yr 90 mil or so.

Could e a factor

 

 

Yeah Tee's agent is another factor that makes this more difficult.

[JC]

44 minutes ago, Jamie_B said:

 

You are making my point for me. 

 

If we do not want to start rookies, that means we either have to spend money FAs outside of the organization or draft really well so that guys are starting after their rookie year. You specifically have said we do not draft well (for Oline I agree other positions not as much) that means we would have to find guys in FA, who are going to cost more than guys on their rookie deals. 

 

Tyler, Reader, Cheedo, Williams and a bunch of cheap TEs leaving. Who do you replace them with? 

Hubbard and Hendrickson coming off soon. I'd assume/hope that Murphy steps into one of those spots, I'm hoping that Ossai can bounce back to take the other spot, but he hasn't earned it yet.

 

Joes money hits next year, Jamar is going to get paid, Taylor Britt needs to be extended. If we do Tee long term and we use the money on him that we are getting back from the guys I listed then that means you're going to have to find replacements for the other guys and those replacements, having less money to spend because we spent it on Joe, Jamar, and Tee, means that the quality of FAs you are going to be able to get is going to be less because the FA asks are going to go up across the board. If DJ Reader was still the same age today as when we signed him, he would be asking for more money today then he did then. That's the inflation that is happening across the league. 

 

This means if we do not want to start rookies, we have to take bridge type FAs and get better at drafting. Letting Tee walk or trading him means we can use that money on a guy that might not be a bridge type FA.

 

The Bengals and Jessie were not close because of contract guarantees, Jessie literally said he was leaving 20mil on the table if he stayed here, he just became one of the highest paid safties in league history, the Bengals were not close to doing that, he may have wanted more in guarantees but the overall money was not close, that's why they didn't extent him.

There have been multiple guys who have said the Bengals were in the $15m AAV ballpark. If he was leaving $20M on the table - he was talking about guaranteed money.

[Jamie_B]

4 minutes ago, JC said:

There have been multiple guys who have said the Bengals were in the $15m AAV ballpark. If he was leaving $20M on the table - he was talking about guaranteed money.

 

The Bengals have never valued the S position enough to pay them top dollar, it's why they let Reggie Nelson go too. Same with the OG position. There are certain positions the team is willing to pay money for and certain ones they are only going to go so far on. They were never going to pay Jessie what the Falcons did  

[JC]

Exactly. His first two years were fully guaranteed and $36M. The Bengals were never going to come close to that and is exactly the same situation we are seeing with Tee right now.

Reggie Nelson walked due to age/third contract. Not because they didn’t value safety. Bates/Hill/Battle have all been day 1/2 picks.

 

[Jamie_B]

4 minutes ago, JC said:

Exactly. His first two years were fully guaranteed and $36M. The Bengals were never going to come close to that and is exactly the same situation we are seeing with Tee right now.

Reggie Nelson walked due to age/third contract. Not because they didn’t value safety. Bates/Hill/Battle have all been day 1/2 picks.

 

 

They were never going to come close to the overall deal either.

 

They don't value the S position to pay them top dollar drafting a guy high isn't what I was suggesting regarding value. Put it this way if Dax turns it around and plays like Jessie did, don't expect they get a deal done with him either.

[JC]

 

The Bengals offered $16M gtd. PDJ has said on his podcast the bengals were in the AAV range. Or maybe I should believe you?

[Le Tigre]

59 minutes ago, Jamie_B said:

 

Let me know when you want to put your adult pants back on and talk about this rationally.

Spare me. I said I wasn’t kidding. If each season is its own universe, then doing it your way—which appears mixing/matching/trading out/trading in—can work. 

All I know is: “moving on” from JBIII/Bell a year ago, left a gaping hole in the secondary, which wasn’t “fixed” by the draft. They were nowhere close to the same defense, and you know it.
 

Roll the bones…it didn’t work. By the same token, they started Hakeem Adeniji, Isaiah Prince and Trey Hopkins…and went to a SB. 

 

If the “pie” truly doesn’t fit all of the mouths to feed, well OK…take your chances. 
 

“Adult” enough for you? 

 

[Jamie_B]

1 minute ago, JC said:

 

The Bengals offered $16M gtd. PDJ has said on his podcast the bengals were in the AAV range. Or maybe I should believe you?

 

Or maybe just believe their history and stop being weird with the ad hominem over a disagreement?

[Jamie_B]

4 minutes ago, Le Tigre said:

Spare me. I said I wasn’t kidding. If each season is its own universe, then doing it your way—which appears mixing/matching/trading out/trading in—can work. 

All I know is: “moving on” from JBIII/Bell a year ago, left a gaping hole in the secondary, which wasn’t “fixed” by the draft. They were nowhere close to the same defense, and you know it.
 

Roll the bones…it didn’t work. By the same token, they started Hakeem Adeniji, Isaiah Prince and Trey Hopkins…and went to a SB. 

 

If the “pie” truly doesn’t fit all of the mouths to feed, well OK…take your chances. 
 

“Adult” enough for you? 

 

 

I do know it, I would be insane to argue otherwise. 

 

Hell I will go even further.

 

They haven't been as good since Ogunjobi left.

 

In fact lets make this even more of a thing.

 

Cam Taylor Britt is the one good player this team has drafted under Lou in the past 3 years. The rest are a bunch of wait and sees.

 

See why I think resigning Tee long term might not be the best idea? Because if we aren't drafting well on defense we might have to go out in FA and get guys.

[Griever]

Interesting article, talks about the strategy of the double-tag

 

https://atozsports.com/cincinnati/bengals-quickly-tagging-tee-higgins-now-clears-several-paths-for-the-offseason-and-beyond/

[Jamie_B]

18 minutes ago, Griever said:

Interesting article, talks about the strategy of the double-tag

 

https://atozsports.com/cincinnati/bengals-quickly-tagging-tee-higgins-now-clears-several-paths-for-the-offseason-and-beyond/

 

Tagging Tee twice is interesting. I am in the camp that thought that we would be drafting RT in 1 this year, and WR in 1 next year if we can't trade Tee. But that leaves us needing a RB next year and I would prefer to get a 1st round RB too. Tagging Tee twice would let us do that, however the question become is the money there to do it with Jamar getting a deal and Joe's money hitting next year. That part I'm not so sure.

[sparky151]

We don't need a first round RB. Second or third round is plenty early. 

[Jamie_B]

2 minutes ago, sparky151 said:

We don't need a first round RB. Second or third round is plenty early. 

 

Depends on the available talent per each year, last year's RBs I'd agree a 2nd or 3rd might be ok, this year not as much.

[stan]

10 hours ago, Jamie_B said:

 

Depends on the available talent per each year, last year's RBs I'd agree a 2nd or 3rd might be ok, this year not as much.

 I agree with Sparky151,Running backs are a dime a dozen.Unless you are an Adrian Peterson type.And those are very rare.

[|BlackJesus|]

[|BlackJesus|]

[|BlackJesus|]

The only WR I would prefer over Tee is Justin Jefferson and I don't think the Vikings are going to let him leave or trade him for Tee.  

 

So unless a team is willing to give away a top 10 pick where we could get a generational OT like Alt, I would prefer to just keep our dynamic WR duo intact.