Tee Higgins Has Requested A Trade From The Cincinnati Bengals, But Will The Organization Honor His Wishes?
Tee Higgins trade talk isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Originally set to hit free agency following the 2023 season, the Bengals used the franchise tag to keep him from reaching the open market. In theory, this tool is supposed to be used to extend negotiating windows for players and teams struggling to agree to long-term deals.
Unfortunately, that hasn’t happened in Cincinnati. Earlier reports indicate that the Bengals have not attempted to extend Tee Higgins, and the wide receiver has formally requested a trade. While Higgins is a great player, the Bengals need to set some money aside for Ja’Marr Chase’s inevitable extension, as well as Joe Burrow’s escalating cap hit. In the salary cap era, teams need to let good players go, and it appears that Higgins will have to get his long-term deal from a different organization.
While the wideout’s long-term future might be elsewhere, head coach Zac Taylor made it sound like the Bengals do not plan to trade Tee Higgins in the coming months. Speaking to reporters, Taylor made it clear that he wants the former second-round pick to help this team win a championship in 2024.
“We’re excited for Tee to have a great year for us. We think he’s our best chance to help us win a Super Bowl. I’ve enjoyed working with Tee the last four years, I expect this year to be no different.”
Zac Taylor Does Not Want to Trade Tee Higgins
Taylor says he wants Tee Higgins to stick around, but he could be trying to drive up his trade price. Reliable wide receivers are hard to find, although the 2024 NFL Draft class is loaded with talent at the position. Right now, most believe the Bengals could get a Day 2 pick for Higgins’ services, and Taylor could be trying to start a bidding war.
Even if Taylor’s comments are genuine, Tee Higgins can try to force a trade. The wide receiver has yet to sign the franchise tag, meaning he is technically not under contract and has no obligation to play in 2024. If Higgins holds out through the offseason, Cincinnati might have to sell him to the highest bidder.
One way or another, there is a real chance that the Bengals trade Tee Higgins at some point before the NFL Draft. If that happens, the following teams should be more than willing to give up a pick for a proven outside weapon.
Possible Team Fits
New England Patriots
Whether it’s Drake Maye or Jayden Daniels, New England’s next quarterback will struggle to succeed in this environment. The offensive line is mediocre, and the receiving duo of Kendrick Bourne and Demario Douglas is one of the most underwhelming in the game. This team needs an established star to help out this offense, and a Tee Higgins trade makes all the sense in the world.
Carolina Panthers
If the 2024 offseason has shown anything, it’s that the Carolina Panthers are devoted to building around Bryce Young. The team has already added Diontae Johnson, Robert Hunt, and Damien Lewis, but they could use another threat in the receiving game. Tee Higgins is a perfect complement to the players already on the roster, as the trade candidate should excel playing the Mike Evans role in the Dave Canales offense.
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys have done a whole lot of nothing thus far in the offseason. This current roster wasn’t good enough to make it out of the NFC Wild Card round last year, and they’ll need to do something dramatic if they want that to change in 2024. A Tee Higgins trade is exactly the bold move this franchise needs, as pairing him with CeeDee Lamb would give the Cowboys one of the best passing attacks in the game.
New Orleans Saints
The Saints have glaring holes at both tackle positions, and they could use an unconventional method to fill minimize those issues. While they’ll probably use their first-round pick on an offensive tackle, they could trade their second-round pick for Tee Higgins. With three reliable receivers in Higgins, Chris Olave, and Rashid Shaheed, Derek Carr should have an open target before the pass rush has a chance to reach the quarterback.
Los Angeles Chargers
The Los Angeles Chargers need a wide receiver in the worst way. Mike Williams wasn’t good enough to justify his cap hit, and Keenan Allen was too old for his salary. Jim Harbaugh parted ways with those two but left a glaring hole on the wide receiver depth chart. Tee Higgins is going to get a massive payday, but he deserves every penny he’ll get in a trade.
Cincinnati Bengals Likely to Invest Heavily in Linemen During Critical 2024 NFL Draft
Cincinnati appears to be locked in for the 2024 NFL Draft.
Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow. Credit: Yahoo! Sports
The Cincinnati Bengals are in a unique position heading into the 2024 NFL Draft. While superstar players like quarterback Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase will keep the team in the conversation for a Super Bowl berth, the team has been in desperate need of a revival throughout the rest of the roster. After all, the team was able to finish last season with a winning record even without their elite quarterback for the second half of the year.
Cincinnati Bengals in Dire Need of Reinforcement in the Trenches
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) throws during warm-ups before the first quarter of an NFL football game between the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns, Sunday, Sept. 10, 2023, at Cleveland Browns Stadium in Cleveland.
While the overall strength of the roster appears fairly strong, the organization can’t afford to lift their foot off the accelerator or they will lose ground to the rest of the AFC North. While the team is officially in the mindset of drafting the most talented player available when their name is called with the 18th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, there are certainly some priority positions that the team will be taking notes on.
Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase (1) catches a deep pass over Miami Dolphins cornerback Keion Crossen (27) in the fourth quarter of the NFL Week 4 game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Miami Dolphins at PayCor Stadium in downtown on Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022. The Bengals improved to 2-2 with a 27-15 win over the Dolphins.
The best place to start for Cincinnati is on the line of scrimmage after they have struggled to build up on the offensive and defensive lines for the past several years. Even after head coach Zac Taylor completely overhauled the groups over his tenure (seven of the nine starters last season were brought in during his tenure), both units were completely mismatched. The offensive line was guilty of giving up far too much pressure to oppositional pass rushes and the defensive line simply couldn’t hold their ground against the rushing attack last season.
Oct 8, 2023; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Cincinnati Bengals offensive tackle Jonah Williams (73) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
The team should have been focused on these two groups regardless but the loss of offensive tackle Jonah Williams and defensive tackle D.J. Reader have highlighted that need. Even though they were replaced by Trent Brown and Sheldon Rankins respectively, those are two bargain options and the team will almost guaranteeably attack those positions within the first three rounds of the upcoming draft.
Dec 7, 2023; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; New England Patriots offensive tackle Trent Brown (77) blocks against Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Nick Herbig (51) during the third quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
With regards to the first round, my number one projection remains the University of Alabama offensive tackle J.C. Latham. Latham has tremendous size at 6’6″ and 360 pounds while his greatest skill set is pass protection. That is a perfect fit for Cincinnati with their obsession with giant offensive tackles and pass-focused attack.
The struggle on the defensive side is that there is only one defensive tackle that would be capable of stepping in on day one and competing for the nose tackle position and that is University of Texas defensive tackle T’Vondre Sweat. Sweat is a monster of a man at 6’4″ and 362 pounds that would be perfect for clogging the entire middle of the line of scrimmage. The big problem is that Sweat is expected to go either late first-round or early second-round and the team will likely need to trade up from their second-round pick to land the Longhorn Goliath.
If Cincinnati is focused during the upcoming draft, they should be able to reload on talent and remain a Super Bowl contender going into the 2024 season.
