By Bill Murphy
Now that we are in the off-season, the Bengals have a decision to make. Both Ja’marr Chase and Tee Higgins have been vital to the success of the offense. Higgins had a career high 10 touchdown receptions, while Chase won the triple crown for receivers, leading the NFL in catches, yards and touchdowns. Now The Bengals have to decide who are they going to pay , as one contract is up and the other is up after next year .
Tee Higgins: Tee Higgins was drafted by the Bengals from Clemson in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft. Over his career Higgins has wracked up 330 receptions ,4,595 receiving yards and 34 touchdowns. This season Higgins had 73 receptions ,911 yards and a career high 10 touchdowns. The one major knock on Higgins is his durability. He has played in 12 games each of the last two seasons. The Bengals have to decide , if he is worth keeping because of his injuries. Last year, Higgins was signed to a one year deal valuing $21,816,000 after he was franchise tagged. Now at the start of the league year Higgins will be a free agent.
Ja’Marr Chase : Ja’Marr Chase was drafted in 2021 from LSU (where he played with Joe Burrow) as the fifth pick in the draft. In his Rookie Season, Chase had 81 receptions, 1,455 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns, winning the offensive rookie of the year that season. During his career, Chase has 395 receptions , 5,425 receiving yards and 46 receiving touchdowns . This season , he had 127 receptions ,1,708 yards and a career high of 17 touchdowns , leading the league in all three categories giving him the receiving triple crown. Chase holds the NFL records for Receiving yards in a season including postseason by a rookie, Youngest NFL player with multiple 100 yard receiving games in a single postseason game ,Receiving yards in a game by a rookie and Receiving yards in a postseason by a rookie. He holds the franchise records of Receiving yards in a game ,Receiving yards in a rookie season ,Receptions in a game , Receptions in a season ,Receiving yards in a season ,Receiving touchdowns in a season and Total touchdowns in a season. Chase is going into his last season of his rookie contract.
How do they stack up vs the league?: The highest paid wide receiver in the league are Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings , who last season signed a $ 140 million contract extension and $ 110 million guaranteed , making it the biggest contract for a non QB player. The second highest paid wide receiver in the NFL is Cee Dee Lamb of the Dallas Cowboys, Lamb signed a $ 136 million , four year contract with $100 Million dollar guaranteed with a wide receiver bonus of $38 million dollars making it the second biggest contract for a non QB player in the NFL after Jefferson.
- How does Higgins stack up?: While I think Higgins has good numbers , I don’t think he stacks up against Jefferson or Lamb. . If the Bengals re sign Higgins , I don’t think he should be getting Jefferson or Lamb type money .
- How does Chase Stock up?: I think Ja’marr Chase stacks up against the rest of the league very well . Chase has two seasons where he threw more than 10 touchdowns unlike his competitors. He also has won the wide receiver triple crown which has been awarded 17 times in the NFL’s history . I think Ja’marr Chase should be one of it not the highest paid Wide Receivers in the NFL .
Now Who Should They Pay ?: I think the answer is simple , If they were to pay one of the two , I would say pay Ja’Marr Chase . The reason I say that is because his performance this year has been outstanding and Tee Higgins is injury prone . The Bengals should try to find a way to pay both of them , but it would be a difficult decision on what to do the on that matter. If they have to make a choice then they should let Higgins walk
What if Higgins Walks?:
If Higgins walks, I think the Bengals will go to the draft and get wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan from University of Arizona . This year McMillan wracked up 84 receptions ,1,319 and eight touchdowns. He would be compliment to Chase , if Higgins walks. The Bengals can also sign a free agent someone like DeAndre Hopkins could make sense.
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