One of the best available free agents may not actually hit the market this offseason.
The Cincinnati Bengals are focused on reaching a long-term deal with wide receiver Tee Higgins, and hoping not to use a franchise tag on him again, according to NFL Media. If the team cannot reach a deal with its veteran before the March 4 deadline (4 p.m. ET), it will likely use the tag on Higgins for the second straight year, Tom Pelissero reports.
Higgins played last season on the $21.8 million wide receiver tag and would be set to earn around $26.1 million if he signs the tag. He has been seeking a long-term deal, and Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow has been staunchly advocating for the Bengals to give it to him. The wide receiver market was reset last offseason by Justin Jefferson and CeeDee Lamb, who received $35 million and $34 million per year on their new deals, respectively.
Higgins may not garner a deal in the same neighborhood as those three players, who are widely considered to be among the top five receivers in the NFL, yet because of his current situation he can likely get pretty close.
If he is franchise-tagged, the floor for any long-term deal Higgins signs would start with that $26.1 million number, and it would likely reach much higher. Whether that deal comes from the Bengals or some other team, he would become a very well-compensated man.
